


Superheroes

by InvisibleBookReader



Category: Banana Bus Squad
Genre: Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Alternate Universe - Serial Killers, Angst, Blood, Fluff, Journalism, M/M, Maybe - Freeform, Mild Gore, Murder, Photography, Smut, superhero au, supervillian au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-13
Updated: 2018-07-02
Packaged: 2018-10-04 05:05:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 17
Words: 21,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10268909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InvisibleBookReader/pseuds/InvisibleBookReader
Summary: Vanoss and Delirious, enemies, it's widely known. Vanoss is Los Santos' hero, protecting it from crime at night, by day he is known as Evan Fong, a boring journalist. Delirious is Los Santos' worst nightmare, a serial killer with no pattern, he strikes randomly. By day he's Jonathan Smith, a photographer. Fate takes a spin when the two find themselves living together.The two start developing feelings for each other, but they don't know who the other really is. Will they discover the other's alter-ego, or will they die trying?Inspired by the song The Phoenix by Fall Out Boy.





	1. Chapter 1 - The Story So Far

Vanoss flinched at the sight before him. Crimson blood smeared across the stark white walls, dripping down it in fat droplets, landing in a pool next to the body on the ground. The dainty girl had been ran through with a knife when she was standing, and a capital "D" had been carved into her torso. Her eyes were still open, blank, unseeing.

Vanoss took careful steps around the obvious works of 'Delirious' trying to not disturbed the crime scene. Some trolls found humour in the idea that the 'D' stood for 'Dickhead'. Delirious didn't find it so funny. He tracked down one from the infamous internet group, ran him through and carved 'Delirious' on his torso. No one mistook his name after that.

Only seconds earlier had he heard the faintest of footsteps with his earpiece enhanced hearing leading out of the building. He heard the scream a few seconds before that, he made quick work of her. Vanoss had called an ambulance as soon as he heard the scream, but any fool could tell tht she's not getting out of that building alive.

Once Vanoss finished taking cautious steps around her, he bolted for the heavy duty metal door where the killer exited. The door lead to a stairwell, with multiple flights. Vanoss raced up as fast as his body would allow him, but he was still not quick enough. Vanoss burst out onto the rooftop and the starry night night greeted him, but no Delirious. Fuck.

Vanoss sank to the ground and rested his head against the door, collecting his thoughts. Faint sirens came tumbling down the streets towards the building. He better get going. Static crackled in the earpiece.

"Is he there? Evan, what are you doing?" Tyler's grainy voice rung out, warped by the earpiece.

"He's gone. I missed him again," Evan sighed, truly defeated. Delirious was a mystery. His style of kill is instantly recognisble, but his attack pattern is as random as pi. There is no pattern, no one knows when he'll strike next. When someone one manged to catch a fragment of him in a photo they wound up dead the next day. Vanoss sees him occasionally, he wears a white and red hockey mask and a blue hoodie. Delirious is aware of Vanoss, they both know that, but they have never spoken. The most contact they've ever had were the numerous amount of times Delirious has winked at Vanoss.

"Well get your ass out of there, the cops will deal with the messy stuff," Tyler replied. Vanoss picked himself up off the ground and headed back down the stairwell. The metallic smell smacked him in the face and almost sent him to the ground. Something catches his eye, something he didn't see before. A folded piece of paper in the corner of the small room. Vanoss creeps over and picks it up.

Eyes, Vanoss, they're everywhere,

-Delirious.

***

"What?" Evan cried, his voice rising several octaves with the question.

"I'm sorry Evan, but you living there is an opportunity too good to pass up," Tyler shrugged his shoulders. Tyler just got a call from the CEO of the business Evan's employed at, Evan needs to move closer to the city.

Evan, Tyler, Brock and David all live on the outskirts of the city, never noticed by people for 'suspicious activity'. They share quite a big house, big enough for their crime stopping hobby. Evan is the 'leader' of the group, but he believes that all of their roles are equal. Evan physically fights the crime, sometimes with the help of Brock, Early Bird, by his side. Brock works full time, he pitches in when he can, but he isn't available most of the time. Tyler is the strategist, he resides in Evan's earpiece and gives him directions. Nogla is the spy. He collects information from the criminals for the four to use against them.

"They'll pay half of your rent, providing you live with the photographer who works for the company. You two will be working together for a few months, the CEO thinks you two will be a power couplet. It'll be fine Evan, you can still come here when you aren't working," Tyler continued.

While Evan wasn't fighting crime and tracking down the infamous Delirious, he worked at a printing press as a journalist. He always got the interviews with the legendary Vanoss, who was as much a mystery to the public as Delirious was. Evan knew what parts of Vanoss to tell the public about to make sure he was in the best light possible, as no one else had ever spoken with him besides police officers. Without Evan's journalism, his alter-ego would be seen as a vigilante rather than a hero.

"Is there any information about the photographer that I have to know?" Evan asked, sighing as he pressed his hand to his forehead.

"His name is Jonathan, he's your age, and he's one of the best photographers in the city. He's participated in articles about Delirious before. You could try and press him for information about Delirious is he knows anything about him," Tyler explained, with a gleam in his eyes.

"Ok, so when am I moving in?"

***

In three days, Evan had packed his essentials into four boxes. It mainly consisted of his clothes and work equipment, but there was also some other personal items packed away, such as some fitness items that were easy to transport.

"Text us when you get there, ok? Stay safe," Tyler said, rubbing Evan's shoulder.

"Before I leave, there's something I want you to analyse." Evan pulled the paper Delirious left him from his pocket and gave it to Tyler. "I got this on the last mission, and I want to see if you can analyse the handwriting and see if there's any other finger prints on it."

Tyler looked stunned. "So you've got a target on your back now?" Evan nodded. "Please watch yourself Evan, we love you and you're crucial to taking down Delirious," Tyler finished.

Evan pulled Tyler into one last hug. David entered the room at the time and wrapped his arms around both of them, crushing them in his embrace.

"It's fine guys, I'll be back tomorrow night," Evan chuckled. The two escorted Evan to his car. David blew Evan a kiss.

"Maybe you're roommate will be hot, and you can finally get some!" David guffawed. Tyler joined in laughing and Evan glares at the duo.

"Give over, I haven't had a proper relationship in two years!" Evan replied, chuckling slightly. Sydney left Evan without any notice, only claiming that he was too boring and she needed knew experiences. If only she knew Evan was fighting crime any spare moment he had.

"See you tomorrow," Evan said as he turned on his car and started driving away, leaving the waving pair behind.


	2. Chapter 2 - Have We Met?

Jonathan finally got the last box into his new apartment. He packed lightly, not needing stacks upon stacks of his belongings. All he needed was his clothes, and toiletries. The rest of his belongings were related to Delirious and were kept back at Lui's penthouse.

Jonathan had his mask tucked away in his underwear and socks, in case his co-worker went snooping around. The Delirious mask was widely feared, and if his roommate found it he would have no choice but to kill him. And he might be a nice person, he doesn't want to kill someone like him.

Or, he could be an undesirable, a rancid bully with a disgusting personality, someone who only exists to make Jonathan's life a living hell. That's the type of person Jonathan likes to make bleed, writhe on the floor, watch convulse and drown in their own-

Jonathan was snapped out of his thoughts by a knock at the door. He quickly put the last box among the others, put his heist things into a small black bag for later in the day, checked his appearance in the mirror above the couch, and made his way to the door. He fiddled with the lock, and finally unlocked it. He opened the door.

Looming over him was a buff asian man carrying two boxes, with two more boxes next to him on the ground. His dark chocolate eyes were averted to the ground, he didn't realise the door had opened. His nicely formed lips were pulled into a straight line. His faux styled hair was as black as night, Jon's favourite time of day, and looked very soft and fluffy.

"Do you want me to help you with those?" Jonathan asked. The man met his eyes, and Jonathan subconsciously drew in a shaky breath. Jonathan couldn't deny, he had a pretty face. He looked hard and strong, yet also possessed an element of softness in his brows, eyes and nose.

"Uh, yes please, that would be great," he said. Jon moved out of the way of the doorway to let the man in. Jon lifted the other two boxes with ease, and set them down where the man put the other boxes.

"I'm Jonathan Smith, by the way. The photographer," Jon stuck out his hand for the other to shake. He grasped it, his hands were calloused and broad, with long fingers. He shook Jonathan's hand firmly.

"I'm Evan Fong, the journalist. You were appointed here by Anthony, yeah?" Evan's voice was rich and sweet, cascading down Jonathan's ears. Jonathan nodded. Even if Evan found his mask, he doesn't see how he could bring himself to kill someone so beautiful.

Sure, he's killed attractive people before, but not godly people.

"Could you show me around the apartment?" Evan questioned, his hand rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. Oh god.

"Yeah, sure, if you'd like," Jon lamely put his hands in his hoodie pockets.

***

Oh boy, this was who he would be working with? Evan would be with someone this downright hot for the next few months? And sleeping within a few metres of him?

Jon helped Evan put his boxes in his room, which was only separated by a thin wall.

"I haven't been here that long, but I'll show you what I know," Jon said. Evan clung to every word that fell from his mouth.

Jonathan was a stunningly attractive man. While Evan was 6'1, Jonathan was 5'8. He had fluffy brown hair that was a little longer on the top and shorter at the sides. He had shining blue eyes that sparked thousands of different shades. His button nose and pink bow mouth added femininity to his looks, but his chiseled jawline and high cheekbones make his face look well structured and strong. Jon's ears had small, black piercings in them.

When Jonathan turned around to show him the apartment, Evan could see the edge of a black, swirling tattoo peeking out from his collar. Evan kept his gaze on the back of Jonathan's head, not trusting his eyes to not wander lower.

"Yeah, so the living room is here once you enter the apartment, and the kitchen is to the right," Jonathan's voice snapped Evan from his thoughts.

"Down here is our rooms, as you know, and the bathroom is at the end of the corridor." Jonathan pointed to the left, where a wall and doorway separated the living room and the corridor.

"Straight ahead there's a cool, little balcony with some chairs to chill on, if you're into that," Jonathan explained.

"And that's all I know about this place," Jonathan turned to fave Evan. And that's when it hit him. There was something vaguely familiar about Jonathan.

"Jon, can I ask you a question?" Evan asked him.

"Sure, go ahead," Jonathan stated, resting his hands on his hips.

"Would there be a chance that I've met you before?" Evan cocked his head as he asked the question.

"Sorry, Evan, but I think I'd remember someone like you," Jonathan said, slowly dragging his gaze up and down Evan's figure. Evan was stunned into silence. He felt his cheeks reddening and Jonathan's words.

Suddenly, Jonathan's phone buzzed from his pockets. He fumbled to get to it, then shot a text of back to his, presumed, friend.

"Sorry, I have to duck out for a while. I'll see you later tonight, right?" Jonathan smiled, and Evan almost gasped at the sight.

"S-sure," he stuttered lamely, internally hitting himself for appearing as such a dork.

"Great!" Jonathan beamed, grabbed a small, black bag from his room, then left.

Evan was probably going to try and find more clue to Delirious tonight, but maybe he can put it off to speak to the handsome man he was residing with.


	3. Chapter Three ~ The Squad Assembles

Jonathan sat his bag in the front seat of his car, and put the keys in the ignition. He started driving towards Luke's house, he needed a word with him before going to Lui's penthouse. Jonathan's mind was clear as he drove to Luke's house. Once Jonathan arrived in Luke's street, he parked under a street lamp and rushed to the doorstep, carrying his bag with him. In the bag were various heist items; guns, knives, ammo, and his infamous hockey mask. Jonathan knocked twice at the door, waited five seconds, then knocked four times. Footsteps echoed out from the hallway behind the door, locks sounded, then a bearded man swings the door open.

"Jonathan! What's up man?" Luke asked, giving Jon a high five. Luke stepped aside so Jon could enter the house. "Have you met your new roommate?"

"Actually, yes I have, he just arrived at noon," Jon explained, donning a faint smile at the thought of Evan. 

"What's he like, hot? Could he be a potential suitor for dear Jonathan, fairest of the land?" Luke laughed, and bowed low for the blue eyed man. Jon blushed. Strange, Jon's never blushed at the thought of basically a stranger before. 

"Yeah, uh, he's pretty hot, actually." Jon scratched the back of his neck awkwardly and averted his eyes from Luke's grinning face. Jon looked back up to Luke and finds that his grin had fallen.

"What happens if he finds out about...you know, your alter ego?" Luke asked.

"I-I don't know what I would do, I guess I would have to kill him even if he becomes too suspicious of me because he's a journalist. He could leak heaps of information about us," Jon said grimly. 

"Speaking of us, I have to get going to Lui's penthouse now, we have a huge heist planned for tonight. See you soon, Luke," Jon waved Luke goodbye and he left he house and drove away.

 

***

 

After half an hour of driving and waiting in traffic, Jon finally arrived at Lui's penthouse. Jon parked his car in the underground parking, Lui always had a spot reserved for each of the members of the gang, Craig, Brian, and himself. Jon exited his car, grabbed his bag and took the elevator to the topmost floor of the skyscraper. As Jon reached the floor, the elevator required him to put in a pass code to enter int Lui's living room. Jon punched in the four numbers, and the doors opened to reveal and spacious, white room. 

Three men were sitting on the white sofa, and Jon approached the men. One stood up to greet him. He had a brown, smooth complexion, deep brown eyes and a black, undercut hairstyle. 

"Del, man, ready for tonight? We have something big planned! We're robbing the downtown bank, but we also want as many casualties as possible. Delirious, you have a big name, but we want the city to know that it's not just you anymore, and that we've been helping behind the scenes. What do you say?" Lui asked as he held out a hand to Jonathan. Jonathan pretends to mull over his answer, before slapping his hand down on Lui's. 

"Fuck yeah I'm in! We'll be the most feared group in all of Los Santos." Delirious maniacally laughed. He was excited to finally have the crew accompanying him on his heists and sprees instead of them hiding away in his earpiece, warning him of approaching enemies. 

"The only problem is Vanoss, what do we do if he shows up with backup?" Craig asked, pushing a lock of pink hair out of his eyes. 

"We fucking book it, I usually do. Although I hate admitting it, he's a skilled guy who isn't afraid to fuck shit up. If he wasn't so good inclined, I'd even say he'd make a great addition to our crew," Delirious explained to the others. 

"Does everyone have their shit together? Yes? Good, let's go boys," Brian piped up, and lead the pack to the elevator. 

 

***

 

At 6:00 pm sharp, the group of four arrived outside the bank. Lui was wearing a monkey mask, Craig wearing a horse one, Brian wearing a terminator mask and Jon still donning his hockey mask. The four men ran into the bank and boarded up the door so no one could enter. They were wearing bullet proof vests, and shooting anyone they saw. Jon led the way, throwing grenades into crowds on people, wrecking havoc wherever they moved. Craig and Brian threatened the bankers, handing them big sacks to fill up with money. while Jon and Lui forced their way into the back of the bank to steal money from the vaults. 

The pair swiftly stowed away what Jon is guessing to be $250,000 into the bags in the vault before he hears police sirens in the distance. 

"Uh, Lui? We better get the fuck outta here," Jon whispered. They tie off the bags, before running up to Craig and Brian. They've shot more people in the time they've been gone, and the bank floors are dyed crimson. 

"Mini! Terroriser! We've got enough let's book it!" Lui yelled. The four reassembled at the door they barricaded shut. 

"I think there's gonna be a lot of cops out there so brace yourselves," Jon said to his friends. They are so close to getting away.

 

***

 

Vanoss was chilling in his new apartment when he heard his phone ring from his phone. He quickly answered it, in case it was something important.

"What's up Tyler? Did I forget something?" Evan questioned. 

"No, but somethings happened at the Los Santos bank, it's Delirious, but he accompanied by three other men. It's a bloodbath, and we're all going to have to help. Nogla, Brock and I are two blocks away, if you speed you'll make it in five minutes. Get here quickly!" And with that Tyler hung up. Evan's heart leaped to his throat. He locked the apartment, and sped off in his car to the bank. 

On his arrival he threw on his famous owl mask before racing out of his car to find the other three. They've never helped Evan do these sort of things before, but they're all physically fit and are almost as powerful as Evan himself. 

Police cars were piled around the entrance, all had their guns trained on the door, waiting for it to open and reveal the bandits. Vanoss, Wildcat, Nogla and Moo were situated above the cop cars, training their own guns on the doors. In a flash, the doors burst open and the four men emerged. One wearing a horse mask shot an RPG at one of the cars, blowing it up and killing the cops inside it. The men started running towards their getaway vehicle, but Vanoss ran towards Moo, who narrowly missed the blast.

"Fuck, Moo, are you alright?" Evan offered Moo a hand to get him up off the group.

"I'm fine Vanoss, focus on them, they're getting away!" Moo pointed to the four men. They'd finished putting their money in the boot of the car, and the one with the monkey mask slipped into the drivers seat. Vanoss made eye contact with Delirious, who only saluted Vanoss as he slid into the car and sped off. 

Tyler and Nogla ran over to Evan and Brock, who looked on in dismay as the car swerved around the corner out of sight. 

"Fuck, they got away. This is bad," Nogla held his forehead. "Since when has Delirious had sidekicks?" 

"Since never, this is the first time I've seen him use some actual structure in a crime rather than just mindlessly killing a bunch of people," Tyler explained. Evan still stood in shock that Delirious saluted him, what does that mean? He already knew he had a target on his back, but this means he needs to be extra careful.


	4. Chapter Four ~ Discussions

Evan closed the apartment door at exactly 10:15 pm, and found that the sofa was already occupied and the TV was already switched on. Jonathan was back from wherever he ran off to, and he was avidly watching the news on the bank robbery from early. Jon was leaning forward, resting his elbows on his knees and his chin in his hands. 

"Just a few hours ago, the notorious serial killer known under the alias Delirious accompanied by three other men robbed the Los Santos. They detonated many bombs and shot innocent people, the death toll is currently at 37. As the four were escaping, Vanoss appeared with three new men. The four got away, and the police are currently searching for any traces of them," The news reporter delivered. The frame cut to a thin, blonde reporter. His badge read 'Bryce McQuaid'.

"What happened here today is very tragic, and we are doing everything we can to track down these villains. Our condolences go out to the families and friends of the fallen ones today." The news then shifts to a story on a celebrity love scandal.

Evan stepped forward and sits next to Jon on the couch. Jonathan turned around to face Evan.

"I didn't hear you come in," Jonathan said tiredly. He yawned and rubbed his eyes, Evan repressed a sigh at how adorable it was. Evan turned back to the TV, remembering the atrocities it just displayed.

"How shit's that robbery, hey?" Evan asked, trying to keep the conversation going. 

"Yeah, it's pretty sad. Wonder where the robbers went," Jon said, his eyes averted to the ground. "I'm pretty tired, so I'm just gonna go to bed now, see you in the morning?" 

"Yeah, I think Anthony wants us down at the office to do an article on what happened. Do you have photos from today?" Evan asked.

"Yeah, I was walking up the street as they drove away. I didn't get a photo of Delirious, but I did get some of Vanoss and his accomplices." Jonathan picked up his camera from the coffee table and turned it on. He flicked to his photos and showed Evan three photos he took. One was of Vanoss aiming his gun at the door, the next of Vanoss helped Moo off the ground, and the last was of the four men grouped together, talking. 

"These are great shots, you have a real talent," Evan said, inspecting the photos closer. The way he was standing in each of the photos showed off his muscular physique. Evan was a bit bashful that these photos would be the ones that could potentially make the front page tomorrow.

***

Jon watched Evan stare in awe at the photos. In all honesty, Jon didn't set up the camera to take photos like he usually does. He just asked Luke to take the photos for him. Luke never likes to get involved in Jon's hidden life, but he will do little tasks like this for him. Jon and Luke sometimes spend days together just travelling Los Santos capturing little moments with their lenses. 

"Thanks, I guess. I've been a photographer my whole life, I can barely remember not doing photography. So I've had a while to get used to it," Jon replied to Evan's compliment, even if it wasn't his own work.

"Wait, how old are you Jon? You don't look old enough for that to be a rude question," Evan asked.

"I'm 28. You said you were 24, right?" Jon answered. Evan nodded affirmative.

"Ok, I'm tired as fuck, so I'm gonna go to bed. Wake me up at 7:30 if I'm not already awake. Goodnight, Evan." Jon rose from the couch and left before he could here Evan's response. Once Jon reached his room he stripped down to his boxers, crawled under his covers and was out like a light.

***

Evan had always been an early riser, so when he woke up 6:30 he just laid still and stared at the ceiling. He finally dragged himself out of bed and pour himself a bowl of cereal. Once 7:00 rolled around, Evan washed up his dish, showered and got dressed into his office wear. He styled his hair and slapped on a tad of his favourite cologne. 

Evan turned on the news to watch until 7:30 came about. Jonathan still wasn't awake so Evan approached his room and knocked on the door. No response. Evan turned the handle and entered the room.

Jonathan was lying face down, his covers pulled down to his waist, the bare expanse of his muscled back exposed. Evan stopped in his tracks, hypnotised by the way Jon's muscles moved as he breathed in and out, and in and out.

Evan took slow steps towards Jon, not really wanting to disturb the peaceful sight before him. However, Jon might be mad at Evan if he didn't wake him up. Evan gently shrugged his shoulder.

"Jonathan? You told me to wake you up. We need to leave soon," Evan said, loud enough to rouse Jon from his sleep. Jon nuzzled his pillow before looking up at Evan. Jon smiled softly.

"Hello darling, kindly never wake me up again," Jon said passive-aggressively.

"Woah, you're the one that told me to wake you up at 7:30," Evan defended, raising his hands.

"I suppose you're right," Jon huffed. He pulled back his covers and stood up. Evan tried to keep his eyes above Jon's waist, he really did. 

"Um, I kinda have to get changed now, so if you could..." Jon trailed off, not meeting Evan's eyes.

"Oh, right sorry. I'll just be waiting in the living room," Evan stuttered, embarrassed. He quickly left the room, shutting the door as he left. Evan tried to level his head, remembering that Jon was still basically a stranger, only an acquaintance. However, Evan was starting to develop those silly butterflies he hasn't had since his middle school days. 

Evan text the group, asking if they wanted him to gather more information on Delirious tonight. Evan spaced out at the TV while he was waiting for an answer. After ten minutes, his phone buzzed with a reply. 

'If u want to, but do u want us 2 come with u this time?' Tyler replied in text talk slang.

'If u want,' Evan replied, before stuffing his phone back in his pocket. Evan heard Jon's footsteps growing closer, so he stood up to face him, guessing that it was time to head to the office.

Jon was still doing up his tie as he walked over to Evan.

"How do I look?" Jon asked , gesturing to his body. Evan tried to fight a blush.

"Fine, you look great, are we leaving now?" Evan questioned. Jon nodded. 

***

"See, I think this one would look better in the centre, it's all of them together," Evan argued, swivelling slightly on his chair. Jon and Evan were arguing about which picture should go in the middle of the page, and which two should be put at the bottom. 

"Friendship is nice and all, but Vanoss by himself is more recognisable. And you can't argue that his muscles are eye grabbing, you have to appeal to the female gaze here," Jon countered, gesturing to the picture of Vanoss standing by himself. Evan turned his face down to the photos to hide his new blush. 

"Why don't we just get someone else's advice? Hey Marcel!" Evan suggested before shouting out to an African American man passing their office. The man in question halts in his tracks. 

"Hey Evan, and...Jon? Did I get that right?" Marcel asked, finger gunning them both. Jon nodded in response. "Great, so what do you want?"

"Which photo would look better in full? I think the one of Vanoss and the newcomers would be better, but Jonathan thinks that Vanoss by himself would be better for his, and I quote, muscles," Evan asked, chuckling at the thought that Jon finds his muscular physique attractive. 

Marcel hums, and rubs his chin in thought.

"I think the one of Vanoss by himself. He's more of a household name, no one is going to know the newcomers. Plus, Jon's right, Vanoss is hot. You don't need to be gay to admit that, you just need to have a working set of eyes. Catch ya later," Marcel briefly waves a hand at them before walking off.

"So it's settled, the portrait is going in the middle," Jon said, editing the picture to be in the centre of the page. "People just like seeing hot dudes, Evan. Pity you can't see his eyes in that mask, the eyes are the most alluring part on a man."

Evan was too busy staring down at his hands folded in his lap to realise that Jonathan was staring directly at him when he stated that.


	5. Chapter Five ~ Midnight Rendezvous

Vanoss adjusted his owl mask as he looked over to Tyler. Tyler was disguised as "Wildcat", wearing his pink pig mask and striped pants. Jonathan had plans with one of his friends that night, so instead of moping around the apartment Evan decided to quell Delirious' anger. After Delirious' stunt at the bank with his new friends, Evan didn't want to risk Delirious letting his blood lust take control and killing more people. 

David and Brock were back at the base, communicating to Evan and Tyler through earpieces. They decided that because Tyler was more of a physical presence than the other two, thus would be more likely to intimidate Delirious, Evan would take Tyler with him on smaller missions. Brock and David were important to keep at the base, but they will come out on huge missions, like the bank robbery, if necessary. 

"Spot anything?" Tyler asked, facing Evan. They were at the building Evan discovered the girl at with the note from Delirious a few days ago. Evan thought that Delirious might be loitering around this building because he was looking for more easy targets, like that poor girl.

"No, but keep an eye out for any of the newcomers as well," Evan replied, swivelling his head to any small sound. The streets are empty, everyone was either asleep or in a club closer to the centre of the city. 

"Have you had a look at the note yet?" Evan asked, turning to Tyler once more. 

"Yeah, and we found that it most likely belongs to a man who's in his late twenties, is satisfied with his day job, but is ultimately a lonely man in love," Tyler explained. Evan was taken aback, Delirious was only about their age, loves his job but wishes for a partner. It's fascinating what you can discover from someone's handwriting.

Delirious struck Evan as the type of guy to have a lot of casual sex and one night stands. Apparently that was incorrect. Evan had seen Delirious' physique, he has an attractive body, so even in his normal life he must be completely mental to scare off partners. 

"It's not that hard Mini, just get the knife to the jugular and rip!" A familiar voice cackled. Delirious. Evan and Tyler whipped their heads to face each other in shock, then looked for the source of the voice. They looked down at the street below, Delirious and 'Mini' had just rounded the corner, both wielding knives. Delirious was slashing his through the air with his right hand, and pulling Mini forward by the wrist with his left. 

Delirious already had droplets of blood rolling down his knife, leaving a trail on the concrete. Delirious always left evidence everywhere and the crime scene in a mess, but the police and Vanoss still never manage to catch him. 

"I know that, I'm just more comfortable with a gun than getting all close and personal," Mini replied, his voice a mix of accents and a little on edge. Tyler and Evan had silently made their way from the rooftop they were hiding on to an alleyway the two men were about to walk passed.

"I bet you are too squeamish, pussy bitch," Delirious teased, nudging Mini's side with his elbow.

"S-shut up! I can do it, I just need a bit more time," Mini argued weakly, shoving Delirious back.

"Prove yourself," Delirious said, pointing his knife accusingly at Mini, before pulling him in close and whispering in his ear. 

Without Vanoss' earpiece he would've missed what Delirious whispered, but his enhanced hearing caught was he muttered: "Grab one of these guys in this alley as we pass". 

Before Vanoss had time to react, Delirious and Mini rounded the corner and Tyler was in Mini's arms with a knife pressed to his throat. Vanoss whipped out his gun and had it trained on Mini's head. Evan heard a click to his left, and saw that Delirious was aiming his gun at Evan's head.

"Fancy seeing you here, Vanoss. And who's this with you? Hurry up, I need a name or I'll shoot you," Delirious threatened. 

"Wildcat, what's your lackey's name or I'll shoot him," Evan retaliated, using Delirious' words against him.

"Mini Ladd, he's new but he knows several ways to behead your Wildcat in less than five seconds," Delirious said, keeping his eyes on Vanoss. Vanoss only knew he was bluffing because he heard their earlier conversation. If he didn't, he would have been a lot more scared for Tyler's life than he was. Mini pushed the knife into the skin of Tyler's throat, making a small cut, drops of blood running down to the tip of the blade. It kind of looked ridiculous, Vanoss thought, such a small man like Mini hugging a tall man like Tyler. Vanoss couldn't see his head, behind Tyler's torso. Although, he must be stronger than he looks for him to keep a grip on Tyler.

Tyler rams his elbow back into Mini's chin, effectively escaping his grasp. He draws his own knife and points it at Mini, keeping him at arms length. 

"Keep your knife down, Mini, these guys are friends of ours, we don't need to get on their bad side," Delirious said, Vanoss picked up on the mocking tone in his words. Delirious lowered his gun, and Mini slowly made his way to Delirious' side again. Vanoss had his gun trained on Delirious now, and Tyler still had his knife raised to Craig. 

"Friends? You are mental..." Vanoss retorted, his eyes locking with Delirious' blue ones. 

"Only for you darling," Delirious saluted Vanoss once more before grabbing Mini's wrist and dragging him into a run, both of them quickly disappearing around the corner into the night.

"What the fuck just happened?" Nogla said in Evan's earpiece, giving Evan a shock. He'd forgotten Nogla was listening in. 

"Delirious' new sidekick almost killed Wildcat, that's what," Evan replied, walking over to Tyler. 

"Is your neck ok? It's a small cut but I have a spare bandaid in my pocket to stop it bleeding if you want," Evan offered, pulling out the bandaid in question.

"Why do you carry that thing on you?" Tyler asked, laughing slightly. 

"You never know when it might come in handy," Evan replied, sticking the bandaid over the wound. The two quickly made their way back to the car, deciding one encounter with Delirious was enough for tonight. 

As they were driving back to the base, Evan asked, "So what did you think of them? Scarier up close?" 

"Mini smelled good," Tyler replied, shrugging his shoulders.

"What? What do you mean?" Evan chuckled, almost losing focus on the road.

"I don't know, he smelled nice, like pine needles, or something," Tyler said, laughing along with Evan.

"Maybe you're the crazy one Tyler".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man, I haven't uploaded in ages, I've been so busy with school. Stay tuned y'all.


	6. Chapter Six ~ Coffee Miracle

Tyler was waiting again. Waiting for a chance, an opportunity, something to swing his way. Tyler was always waiting for something, whether it be a promotion for his under appreciated work, or for someone to miraculously fall in love at the mere sight of him. However, this morning Tyler was waiting for coffee. 

His daily cup was a necessity for him to function throughout the day without a complete meltdown. Tyler had been living in his apartment in Los Santos for two years but still hadn't bought his own coffee machine. So every morning when he had to go into the office, he would go down to the Starbucks on the corner of his block, wait in line for five minutes to order, wait in another line for ten minutes to receive his cup, then leave for work. It was a bore sometimes, but it was time for Tyler to stand back and reflect. 

He was stuck in a job he hated, he was a legal word processor for a law firm that didn't acknowledge him unless they had to. He went home to a cold bed, not even any casual flings, and he never got out enough to meet new people. Tyler tried not to stress, but he was twenty six and the last relationship he was in was when he was nineteen and it ended in tears. The girl he was with was unaware that to Tyler she was a coverup for his sexuality. 

Growing up, Tyler always knew he was different, he never understood why his friends were girl crazy, or why they would be so persistent with dating them when Tyler just preferred his own company. It took until he was sixteen to realise he was gay, and he didn't have a problem with that. The problem was his parents. They weren't homophobic, as such, they were just adamant that Tyler should have a girlfriend, settle down and have grandchildren. That's who Alissa was for Tyler, she was someone to bring home for the holidays, but he never experienced any real connection outside platonic to her. She was madly in love with him, and failed to see that he wasn't straight. Once she found out he was gay, she cried, packed her bags and Tyler never saw her again.

The best thing in Tyler's life at the moment was the Vanoss project. He was able to concentrate on doing something that he enjoyed, helping people. He was able to help recover beloved stolen goods of innocent citizens, prevent murders and assaults, and make friends along the way. He met Brock and David through Evan, and he met Evan when he was interviewing Tyler on a national criminal case. The two hit it off, had Brock and David develop the technology needed for the missions, and put Vanoss' name and face on every front page in Los Santos. The new token superhero.

"Tyler," a bored voice called. Tyler walked up to the counter to receive his coffee, handed to him by a teenage girl who looked like she had better things to do with her time than serve men in fancy suits. Tyler gave a quick nod of thanks and took a testing sip of his coffee. Perfect, as always. 

As Tyler turned around to exit the store, a chest collided with his own, and hot coffee was spilt all down the front of his white dress shirt. Tyler's own coffee was safely held in his hand, which he quickly put down on a nearby counter, so it was the other man's coffee that was now slopped down his front. It didn't hurt too much, but now he would be late to work.

"Shit! Man, I am so sorry, I didn't see you there!" A voice pleaded from in front of him. Tyler looked up from his shirt to find pleading green eyes gazing back at his own. The man reached around Tyler to grab some napkins and started blotting at the coffee. Knowing that it was entirely useless, Tyler grabbed the man's wrist and pulled it away from his chest. 

"It's fine, um-,"

"Craig. Craig Thompson."

"-Craig, it's not your fault, it was just an accident," Tyler reassured, the shorter man looked like he was stressing himself silly over the ordeal. 

"Surely I can repay you somehow? I can pay for the dry cleaning for your suit," Craig offered, the pleading tone still evident in his voice. Tyler shook his head.

"No, I'm alright," Tyler mumbled, not knowing what else to say. He wasn't going to get this random, albeit attractive, stranger to pay for an accident. 

"At least let me give you my number, just incase you change your mind and decide to let me be decent and pay for the damage I caused," Craig argued, pulling out his phone. 

"Alright, fine," Tyler succumbed. He pulled out his own phone and Craig punched his number into his contacts.

"I didn't catch your name, what was it?" Craig asked, looking back up to Tyler.

"Tyler Wilde," Tyler answered, locking eyes with Craig. He smelt like pine and vanilla, Tyler always liked the smell of pine. 

"Well Tyler, I'll expect a call from you, won't I? Maybe we can discuss where you are going dressed up so fancy?" Craig dragged his eyes up and down Tyler's form and threw a wink at him before turning on his heels and walking away. Tyler stood there shell shocked for a moment before grabbing his own coffee and bursting out of the shop. He power walked back to his car and drove back to his apartment to change his shirt. 

Before he left again for work, he grabbed his phone and called Evan who picked up after three short rings.

"The fuck do you want?" Evan asked groggily.

"Evan, I met someone! Can you believe that? Me!" Tyler shot back, barely containing his excitement.

"Well, congrats buddy, it's been long enough since the last time that's happened," Evan retorted.

"Shut up! He's really cute and he smells like pine, you know how much I love the smell of pine," Tyler replied.

"Ok Tyler, let's talk more about this the next time we meet for an outing, because I just woke up and need to get ready for work," Evan said. 

"Alright, talk to you soon Evan," Tyler said and hung up. He jumped back in his car and didn't stall getting to work, a strange new energy flooded his veins.

Tyler left his cup of coffee sitting on the counter, for the first time in years he felt he didn't need it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, I know this is just a filler chapter, but I want to put a bit of Minicat in this story so that's why this chapter is focused on Tyler and not Evan. I promise development in H2OVanoss in the next chapter though, so keep your eyes peeled for that. Thanks!


	7. Chapter Seven ~ Three Tastes

## Chapter Seven ~ Three Tastes

"This is huge! Next time you get close to Vanoss in front of the media, rip his mask off and expose his face to the world! He will be charged with being a vigilante, and then we would have less opposition. No one would want to speak out against Delirious without Vanoss' protection," Lui explained. Jonathan was talking on a disposable phone with Lui about what had happened two nights ago in the alleyway. 

It was now 7:30am, and Evan was still sleeping in his own bedroom. It was their day off, and Jonathan planned to spend it lounging about the apartment, flicking through random television programs. That is, until Lui interrupted his leisure time. 

"That's good, but Vanoss is fast, he would probably reach for my mask straight after. I can't believe he hasn't tried tearing off my mask already," Jonathan countered. 

"Right, of course. Just keep your details out of the media. And how's that Evan going?" Lui questioned. Jon felt his face flush a little at the mention of Evan.

"Evan? Oh...um, yeah he's ok," Jon mumbled shyly.

"Bullshit man, I can hear by your tone that something's up, what is it?" Lui pestered.

"It's just...whenever I'm around him I feel strange. My stomach tightens, my heart beats faster, and I don't want to leave his side. He's so good to me, Lui. I don't know what I'm feeling towards him," Jon replied.

"Wow, Jon. Did you ever consider that you like him? As more than just a friend?" Lui laughed a little.

"What?"

"You're hopeless sometimes Jon," Lui chuckled.

"What should I do about it then?" 

"Ok listen, it's your day off, right? When he wakes up, ask him if he wants to go grab breakfast and a coffee with you, then walk around the city together for the day or something," Lui tediously explained.

"Because Los Santos is so romantic," Jon drawled.

"It's the best you've got with the given time, don't complain," Lui argued, "Ok, I'm going to leave, I have a hot lunch date with some lanky dude. Tell me about Evan, won't you?" Without another word, Lui hung up.

Jonathan could hear the faint pitter-patter of the shower. Evan must be up. As quickly as Jon noticed the shower was even running, it switched off. 

Five minutes later, Evan emerged with blow dried hair and a small smile.

"Morning, what's on today's agenda?" Evan asked, his head resting on the doorframe to the lounge room. 

"Listen, Ev, I wanted to ask-"

"No, actually, before you make any plans, I found this amazing breakfast joint a block or two away and I want us to go try it out this morning," Evan cut Jon off. Jon was shocked, he was thinking the same thing as Evan.

"Sounds great, I was just about to ask you the same thing," Jon answered. 

***

Evan silently munched at his blueberry muffin while Jon was telling him about his childhood. He grew up motherless, with a father that was passed out drunk more often than he was conscious. His sister died when he was fourteen, and Jon still remembers the smell of burnt rubber in the air from the car that hit her. 

"Ok that's depressing, moving on. What are you hobbies Evan? I feel like you know a lot about me but I know nothing about you," Jon suggested. 

"Oh, well I like editing across a few medias. Obviously I edit my writings as a job, but I like editing music, specifically electronic music. I also dabble in video editing, like slideshows and collages," Evan explained, taking bites of his muffin in between sentences. 

"That's awesome, Ev. You'll have to let me listen to some of your tracks sometime," Jon smiled gently. 

"What coffee do you usually drink? I'll pay for it," Evan offered. 

"I drink black coffee, but you don't have to pay for it," Jon weakly offered. Even though there was delicious food in the quaint shop, it was still expensive and he would be glad to let Evan pay.

"Nonsense, you paid for the muffins earlier, so it's only fair." Score. Evan stood up and walked over to the counter to pay. Jonathan was never the type of guy to shamelessly ogle another, but he couldn't help but get lost in the movements of Evan's hips. Evan only waited a minute or so for the drinks, the service here is incredible. He walked back over to where Jon was situated, and passed Jon his piping hot, black coffee. 

Jon stood to join Evan, and they left the shop to walked around Los Santos with their beverages. They exchanged little stories and pleasures from their lives as they walked. They soon found themselves standing at the edge of the Del Perro pier, coffees long gone, sun high in the sky. 

They both faced the ocean, every so often their fingers would brush together. Jon found pleasure in the fact that Evan would sharply inhale every time Jon slowly dragged his fingers up Evan's palm. 

Evan turned his face towards Jonathan, who had looked at Evan's sudden movements. Evan was right there, his face only inches from Jon's, and it was still getting closer. He could feel Evan's breath on his chin.

Jon could see every tiny freckle spattered on Evan's nose, every individual eyelash...

***

"Hey, you must be David, right? It's nice to finally meet you." Lui extended a hand to the lanky man who towered over him. Lui was already a small man, but standing next to this giant he felt minuscule. David swiftly took up his hand and shook it so hard Lui thought he was going to rip his arm off. 

"It's great seeing ya, and when you said you were short you weren't kiddin'!" David exclaimed, thick Irish accent bouncing off every wall in the pizzeria. He got the attention of some others, but they were being just as loud as him.

Brian told Lui about this app called Grindr ("it's revolutionary, Lui, you'll absolutely adore it!") and he instantly hated it. He constantly received messages from douchebags who wanted a quick fuck or a drug hookup. Although Lui was part of a gang, he preferred to keep his love life out of his crimes. 

But David...David was different.

When he received the first message from David he promised himself that if it wasn't a positive message he would delete Grindr for good. Instead, David just wanted a boyfriend to be himself around. David told Lui that he was sick of not being able to be himself in his everyday life, and he just wanted someone to talk to, cuddle, and play video games with.

Lui found him rather sweet, which was the opposite from Lui's usual type. Lui usually went for the bad boy archetype, much like himself. However Lui was fed up with the constant heartbreak, and was finally looking for someone to settle down with, he was almost 30. 

"Let's grab a booth, the seats are way comfier," Lui suggested, pointing to a booth in the far corner of the shop. He let David order a surprise pizza for him, so he ordered a simple cheese pizza.

"Hey, you can never go wrong with Margherita," David argued as he took a bite. Lui followed his actions, and found himself staring at the way David licked his lips. Lui quickly averted his eyes to his own pizza. 

Lui and David shared many tales, and spoke of their favourite video games, promising each other to play together all the time. The more the lunch progressed, the more Lui could envision himself settling down with the funny Irishman. 

They quickly polished off the pizza and cleaned the booth, but they remained sitting and continued to talk. Lui could get lost in the lilt of David's voice. David stopped speaking to take a sip of his lemonade, and Lui snapped out of his reverie. He still stared at the softness of David's brown hair, neatly resting on his head. Lui met David's chocolate eyes, and felt himself draw closer to them. David gave Lui a quizzical look.

Lui suddenly lurched forward and grabbed David by the collar to pull him closer...

***

"I'm so glad we decided to do this together," Craig mused, looking up at Tyler. "I didn't expect you to actually call me back. I thought you would just take the anonymous dry cleaning money and run with it."

"Why wouldn't I call you back? You tried to help me, and I thought that the best way to repay you for the dry cleaning would be a quiet afternoon in the park," Tyler explained. He tore a chunk of bread off and hurled it towards a duck by the banks of the pond, only a few feet away from the park bench they were sprawled across.

"I thought you would be mad at me for spilling my coffee on you," Craig looked down, quietly chewing his gum, "and guys like you don't usually go for guys like me." Craig threw a piece of bread towards a different duck, who quickly pecked it up.

"What do you mean? You've been nothing but kind to me; you've paid an enormous amount for my dry cleaning, you've agreed to put up with me for an entire afternoon, and you're hinting at us doing this again in the future," Tyler listed. He looked over to Craig's smiling face, green eyes peering up at him in awe, jaw only slightly moving with each bite of the spearmint gum.

"Besides, you're easy on the eyes, Craig," Tyler stated. He threw another chunk of bread to a lingering duck.

"You're not to bad yourself, Ty," Craig replied, his gaze not leaving Tyler's face. 

Before Tyler missed the chance, he brought his lips to Craig's cheek, then moved a little to the right...

***

...Evan tasted of coffee.

...David tasted of lemonade.

...Craig tasted of spearmint.


	8. Chapter Eight ~ A Scarf And A Guardian Angel

"Wait, so you kissed him, not the other way around?" David asked Evan, to which Evan nodded frantically.

"Doesn't sound like me, does it? But the way the sun was reflecting of his eyes I couldn't help myself. He even suggested we start properly dating, so I must have done something right, right?" Evan was too excited to articulate properly, so he just let his inner teenage girl fly free. Nogla and Tyler were leaning forward with earnest expressions lighting up their faces. They were so invested in Evan's recount of his date earlier that day that they had almost forgotten about their own experiences. Almost.   
Nogla nodded, "Yes Evan, it sounds like it was perfect. Can I play the first dance song at your wedding?" 

"Settle down, we only got coffee together," Evan laughed, rolling his eyes. 

"And made out," Tyler snorted, laughing harder as Evan's face went bright red. 

"What about you two then? How did you grindr date go?" Evan changed the topic away from him, gesturing to David instead. 

"We got pizza, he's a really down-to-Earth guy, ya know?" Nogla shrugged his shoulders. 

"And?" Tyler interrogated after a moment.

"And then we snogged for a bit," David replied, eyeing his cuticles. 

"Knew it, you dirty bastard," Tyler chuckled. 

"Hey! I know you were pashing that guy who ruined your suit, what are you laughing at?" Nogla defended, pointing at Tyler, who was faintly blushing.

"What, a man can't kiss his boyfriend in peace?" Tyler asked, looking between the two men, who only shook their heads at him with faint smiles. Evan heard a car rumble to a stop in the driveway of the secret base. 

"That must be Moo," Evan said as he rose and unlocked the front door for his friend. Sure enough, Brock exited his car and made his way up the steps to the large house. As he entered, Evan noticed that Brock was wearing a scarf, even though it was quite warm outside. Plus, Brock was never really a scarf type of guy. He had his shades resting on his nose, covering his brown eyes. 

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late." Brock set his keys down on the coffee table and took a seat opposite Tyler and Nogla. Evan took the space left, next to Brock.

"Dude, you look like a wreck. We haven't heard from you since last night, you get shitfaced?" Tyler asked, suspiciously eyeing Brock. Brock then removed his sunglasses. 

"No, tipsy, maybe," Brock answered. 

"I thought you hated scarves," Nogla said, pointing at the scarf wrapped tightly around Brock's neck. 

"Yeah I do," Brock said. He unwound the scarf and threw it onto the coffee table. His neck was covered in a multitude of dark hickeys, spreading from his jawline down to the base of his neck and disappearing under his shirt. There was even a bite mark at the junction of his neck. The three others stared in wonder for a moment before anyone spoke.

"Was it that good?" Tyler asked, smile playing at his lips.

"Actually, that's what I need to talk about. For the past three or so months I've been seeing this guy, only casual, not strings attached and stuff," Brock took a deep breath, "but I think I'm starting to catch feelings."

"Oh, Brock..." Evan slung an arm around Brock's muscly shoulders. 

"We promised each other that we wouldn't let it develop into anything more than casual hookups, but he's just so sweet, and he cares. It's more than any of my past relationships have ever done for me." Everyone knew that Brock was talking about Lindsey, his ex-wife. Brock married her when they were both 19, and they stayed together for five years before he walked in on her with another man. She had been going behind his back for three years, and Brock was too scared to try dating anyone again. Now he's 27, and still hasn't tried to get pack into the dating pool. This is big for Brock.

"Well, reassess the relationship with him, be honest, nothing to lose, right?" Nogla offered.

"Yes there is." Brock held his head in his hands. "I could lose him." Something occurred to Evan.

"You never told us his name," Evan said, looking down at Brock's slumped form. Brock sat back up.

"Oh, right, his name is Brian."

*** 

Jonathan slid his mask back into his underwear draw to hide it from his roommate. Lui and Jonathan were going to steal from the art museum a few streets down, but Lui text Jon telling him that there had been a change of plans and the steal was off. So instead, Jonathan resigned himself to a night of editing photos on his computer.

If he concentrated, he could still feel the tingle in his lips, and could smell Evan's scent. Jon could feel his cheeks grow red and heat began to pool low in his stomach. He quickly switched his mind away from Evan and focused to fixing the saturation of his ocean view photo instead. 

No sooner had he finished, Jon heard keys jingling and unlocking the door. Evan stepped through, a smile lighting up his face as he spots Jon. Jon closed his laptop and turned to greet Evan properly. Jon felt Evan's lean arms wrap tight around him, muscles tensing underneath sun kissed skin. Jon inhaled deeply, feeling secure in Evan's arms. 

"How were your friends?" Jon asked, remembering that Evan said he made plans with his friends for after their rendezvous. A crease between Evan's eyebrows formed, and all Jonathan wanted to do was lean up and smooth it out. So he did.

"Had a relationship dilemma, but hopefully it's just nothing," Evan said vaguely. 

"Well, instead of worrying about your friend, how about you relax for one night instead? I have some shitty Adam Sandler movies that need to be watched," Jon offered, smiling up at Evan. Evan smiled back and nodded softly.

"That sounds perfect, even though Adam Sandler is about as funny as my left foot," Evan replied, making his way to the couch and flopping down on it.

Jon raced into the kitchen and grabbed two bowls of cookie dough ice cream. When he entered again, Evan had put in the DvD and was waiting patiently for Jon to return.

"Ice cream? Are you an actual mind reader, or just a life saver?" Evan asked, patting the couch next to him. 

"I'm your guardian angel, Ev," Jon laughed, handing Evan a bowl of ice cream. Jon slumped on the couch next to Evan as Grown Ups started. Throughout the course of the movie, Jon felt himself drift closer and closer to Evan. Their ice cream bowls lay long forgotten on the coffee table, and Jon's head was resting on Evan's chest, their arms snaking around each other. 

Soon, the movie finished and Jon could barely keep his eyes open. He went back to his own room after cleaning the dishes to get changed into a pair of loose fitting pants. After brushing his teeth, Jon followed Evan back to his room, too cold to spend the night alone. Evan was already tucked under his blankets, not expecting Jon to follow him. 

Jon crept over to Evan's bed and climbed in next to him. He faced Evan and rested his next next to his shoulder, hugging him close. Evan snaked his own arms around Jon, pulling the slighter man towards him. Evan pressed his lips to Jon's forehead before they drifted off to sleep, still in each other's arms.


	9. Chapter Nine ~ Face to Face

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to clarify this is set two months after the previous chapter

Evan slapped his bag down on the sweaty gym bench and pulled out a bottle of water. After a gruelling workout session like that, he needed to replenish himself. Today was arm day, and he could barely lift his numb arms up to his mouth to drink. After he screwed the cap on tightly and put his bottle away, Evan looked up and locked eyes with a pair of familiar blue orbs. Jonathan.

"Hey Jon!" Evan waved Jon over, arms almost too numb to lift. Jon walked over and took the seat next to Evan, sinking into the soft material. He looked flushed, like he had just finished his own workout. Jon was sporting a tank top similar to Evan's but his was a baby blue. It was tight fitting, and Evan could see each ragged breath he drew. Evan was not going to lie to himself, seeing Jonathan in a tight shirt and shorts, out of breath, was doing things to him. 

Evan could feel Jon's thigh flush against his own, burning skin on burning skin. Evan's pulsed raced, and it only intensified when he met Jon's gaze. 

"What are you doing here?" Evan asked.

"Working out? I thought that much was obvious," Jon replied. Evan blushed, realising how dumb he must sound.

"Oh, um, see you tonight then?" Evan awkwardly asked. He ruined his chance at conversation with a dumb question. 

"Sure Ev," Jon leaned over and quickly kissed Evan, and then looked around for anyone who might get angry. The two had been dating for two months now, and they had received their fair share of homophobic abuse from random strangers. One man threatened to report them to the police, even though there is nothing criminal about it. The only criminal element was the sin that was Jonathan's lips. Pink and plush and Evan could never get enough.

That hot feeling returned to Evan's groin, so he picked up his bag with a final goodbye to Jonathan and left before it escalated into what would be a terrible erection.

***

Vanoss was staring straight into the blue eyes of Delirious for what felt like the millionth time. His mask was still strapped firmly to his face, and there was a stained smattering of blood across the left cheek. 

A large van waited behind Delirious, filled with who Vanoss now knew as Mini Ladd, Terroriser, and Lui. They were shouting and ushering for Delirious to join them, but he was too caught up in staring into his enemies' eyes. Vanoss was disgusted.

Only a few feet away laid the bodies of three middle aged men in suits. They were ripped apart in broad daylight by the three gang members while Delirious stole his briefcase. Vanoss was already in the area, hearing of a bomb threat that was set to detonate around the same time. It was a surprise to see Delirious strike in the day, usually he used the shadows as his disguise. Vanoss pondered that the bomb threat was most likely a set up from the four men, designed to lure him in to kill him. But why would they strike three harmless men?

Maybe it was that infamous blood lust of Delirious'. 

No sooner had the incident occurred, five separate photographers started taking photos and three news crews began to set up. There must have been a journalism or photography lunch in the cafe across from the place where the men were killed.

"Delirious! Do it now or leave!" Lui screamed, knocking both Vanoss and Delirious from their daze. As soon as Lui shouted, Delirious surged forward, his hands clawing at Vanoss' mask. Vanoss quickly pushed him back while grabbing the strings of the hockey mask. To Vanoss' joy the strings snapped, but Delirious' hand flew up to pin the mask to his face before it could fall to the ground. 

Delirious turned on his heel and ran into the van just as the cops started pulling up. The cops tried to usher Vanoss over to get answers from him, but Evan muttered something about running late, and briefly explained that Delirious savagely attacked the three men lying on the pavement. 

Vanoss had Tyler parked around the corner, so once he got in the car Tyler sped off towards the base. Once Vanoss was in the security of the car it clicked, Delirious was trying to expose his face to the public. Delirious had almost foiled him, ruined his life. Albeit, Evan had done the same to him, but at least Evan was not a cold blooded murderer. 

***

Jonathan came through the door at 7:00 that night, and he was sporting his camera and tripod. He set them down on the bench while blowing on his fingers to warm them up. 

"Hey, sorry I'm late, you won't believe the shots I got today!" Jon said, excitement laced his tenor voice. Once Jon's fingers were thoroughly warmed, he grabbed his camera and brought it over to where Evan and his laptop were residing. He set it up and quickly the images of Vanoss and Delirious were showcased on the screen. They were of exceptional quality, as Jonathan's work always was. But Evan's mind reeled because he didn't remember seeing Jon there today, and he couldn't ask.

"These are amazing, they'll make a brilliant front cover," Evan remarked, eyes looking at the zoomed in photo of himself and Delirious staring each other down, faces so close, ready to tear out each other's throats.

"Thanks Ev," Jon smiled, hand knitting into Evan's.

"But," Evan started, "what were you doing so close to that? He killed three people! He could've hurt you Jon. And I don't know what I would do without you." Evan swallowed harshly, trying not to imagine Jonathan's body lying on the ground alongside the other men. Jonathan sighed.

"I'm sorry Ev, I'll try not to do it again. Although, it is worth it for shots like this," Jon said. Evan thought for a second.

"I remember when Delirious was even more of a mystery than he is now, he once killed a photographer for taking pictures of him. How come he isn't coming after you?" Evan asked. It was a reasonable question, Jonathan seemed to know a bit about the murderer without explanation. 

"I don't paint him in a bad light, those photos probably contained the crime, while I only get him in the frame," Jon shrugged. Evan nodded, but his answer wasn't totally convincing. Delirious didn't sound like the type of guy to reason with someone. Jon shut off his computer.

"Alright, goodnight Ev," Jon said and walked to his bedroom. Evan stayed up for a while longer, still processing everything. He was sure he didn't see Jon amongst the photographers, but maybe the adrenaline stopped him from noticing the finer details. Evan was going to keep a closer watch on Jonathan from now on, to make sure he wasn't going to get hurt.

Evan also wanted to make sure he wasn't dealing with the devil.


	10. Chapter Ten ~ Ace and Blueprints

Brock was staring straight into the ashy cobalt eyes of Brian Hanby. Brian's right hand was still resting on the brassy doorknob that he had just swung open for Brock. Brian's left eyebrow quirked up, not expecting Brock's presence this early in the day.

"I didn't think we were meeting today," Brian said, smirking as Brock swallowed nervously.

Brock's eyes darted away from Brian's steady gaze, instead finding a place to rest on Brian's hand on the door.

"Actually, I was here to talk about that. Could I come in for a minute?" Brock questioned. His heart rate was already climbing and he hadn't even said what he came to say yet. Brian's bravado faltered, but his smirk still stayed etched high on his face.

"Sure man, come in." Brian stepped aside and held a hand back into his house, gesturing for Brock to sit on the leather couch they fucked on only a week earlier. As Brock passed to sit down, Brian's outstretched hand slapped his ass. Brock bit back a surprised yelp before taking his seat. Brian shut the door behind him and took a seat opposite Brock.

"Coffee?" Brian offered. Brock shook his head.

"Don't distract me, I need to get this off my chest before I work myself into a panic attack," Brock replied. Brian's smile dropped off his face, and his eyebrows furrowed. At the mention of Brock stressing, Brian was instantaneously paying attention. 

"What's wrong?"

"Listen, I understand if you don't feel the same way, or want me to never contact you again but..." Brock took a staggered breath, "I think I've...grown attached to you."

Brian blinked a couple of times. "What?" He cocked his head.

"Don't make me say it..." Brock trailed off. When Brian still didn't answer him, Brock continued, "I'm in love with you."

Brian sat in shocked silence.

"I know we agreed that feelings are off the table, but I just couldn't help myself. I couldn't be silent any longer, and now it's out in the open-"

"How long?" Brian asked, a hint of desperation flickered in his eyes. 

"What?"

"How long have you felt this way?" Brian asked again. 

"I don't know, about six months?" Brock weakly offered. 

Brian leapt up from his seat, lunged at Brock, and trapped their lips in a heated kiss. Brock's arms slunk around Brian's muscled waist while Brian knotted his fingers in Brock's chestnut hair. Brian quickly found himself straddling Brock, so he pulled away before it escalated.

"You idiot! That's what you had to tell me? I've been in love with you from the start! Why else would I propose a lewd arrangement like this?" Brian exclaimed, grinning from ear to ear. He pulled Brock's head back up to meet Brian's eager lips. Brock responded with excitement, pulling Brian even closer so their groins were flush with one another. 

Brock pulled back to regain his breath, and rested hus forehead against Brian's chest. Brock was grinning like a madman, happy to finally be officially with Brian.

***

Craig's eyes followed his tall boyfriend's form as he paced the length of Craig's living room. Back and forth and back and forth and back and-

"Craig!" Tyler's shout cut through his hazy thoughts.

"Huh? What?" Craig stumbled out. Tyler sighed and took a seat next to Craig. He rested his hands on Craig's thigh, but in a concerned manner rather than a sexual one. 

"Now stop me if we're moving too fast, but I think we should move in together. We spend so much time crashed on each other's couches that it would be, economically, better for us. Plus, I've never clicked with someone like I have with you," Tyler explained, looking into Craig's eyes.

"Um," Craig started. Tyler's face sunk, preparing for defeat.

"Yes! I think it's a great idea!" Craig grinned and kissed Tyler's cheek. Tyler's head whipped back up and a blush smattered his face.

"Really?"

"Yes of course, dickhead. We're basically living with each other already. We've been dating for, what, seven months? I can't stand the nights I'm without you," Craig replied, beaming. Tyler matched his smile before drawing their lips together. 

"I think that tomorrow we should go out and look for apartments. Maybe closer to Evan and Jonathan so we don't have to trek across the city every time we want to meet up," Tyler suggested.

"Sounds good to me." Craig fell into Tyler's arms, smiling.

***

Tyler and Craig decided on buying a large apartment one block away from Evan and Jon's. The apartment had two bedrooms and a large living room with windows covering one wall with a perfect view of the city skyline. 

Craig waltzed around the apartment, unpacking various boxes full of clothes and knickknacks as he went. He stopped his frolicking as he heard Tyler's keys jingle in the lock. Craig quickly turned on their new coffee machine, Tyler would probably be grumpy after an infuriating day at work. The new apartment was a kilometre from the nearest Starbucks, so Craig got a new coffee machine for Tyler's birthday that was on the previous Wednesday. 

"Hey babe, how was work?" Craig asked. He had his back to Tyler, who was putting his bag down on the couch.

Unbeknownst to Craig, Tyler put another huge, cardboard box down on the couch next to his bag. 

"Good, Craig. How was slacking off in the apartment all day?" Tyler retorted. Craig barked out a laugh.

"Hey, I've been slaving away all day, unpacking heavy boxes, and now I'm making coffee especially for you," Craig shot back. Craig turned around with two cups of coffee in his hands. He eyed the suspicious box on the couch. He slowly put down the coffee on the bench.

"So help me if I see one more box-"

"Craig, I understand you've been working hard lately to get this apartment into shape, so this is the last box you'll have to open," Tyler interrupted. Craig's eyes flickered in between Tyler and the box as he inched closer to it.

"Go on, it won't bite," Tyler said, "much," he added as an afterthought. Craig's eyes blew wide at Tyler's comment. Craig strode over to the box and placed his hands on the lid. After a moment of hesitation, and yanked the lid off.

A black and white King Charles Spaniel leapt up to Craig's chest, trying to bound out of the box. It yipped with glee, its tongue slopping out the side of its mouth. Craig squealed and scooped the puppy up.

"Tyler!" Craig shouted,"how? Just how?"

"He's a month old, I bought him a couple of days ago and I just kept him with a friend while I was buying supplies." As Tyler explained, Craig noticed all the puppy food and other necessities piled up in the box. 

"What are we going to name him?" Craig asked, patting the excited dog.

"You choose, it's your treat," Tyler smiled kindly.

"How about Ace?" Craig suggested. The puppy yipped again, trying to lick Craig's chin.

"Sounds good to me," Tyler agreed.

***

Daithi was snooping again. However, he wasn't snooping for the team like he usually was, he was snooping for his own personal pleasures. 

Lui had invited him over for drinks, just the two of them, and Lui went to the liquor store across the street to grab more booze. So David took the opportunity to discover more about Lui's character. Lui just seemed too good to be true. 

David and Lui had been meeting up sporadically for the past several months. They call themselves a couple, but it's mostly a bromance with occasional face sucking.

David found himself wandering into Lui's bedroom. A black king bed was centre in the room, facing towards the huge penthouse windows. David hated to admit it, but he was jealous of how rich Lui was. Before too long David found himself looking through Lui's belongings and drawers. Unsatisfied with his findings he walked backwards out of the room, or at least he meant to.

Instead, his back slammed into a cabinet. David swung around in surprise. The mirror on the cabinet had vanished, and now there was a hidden compartment. Nogla had never seen anything like it besides at Vanoss' base. 

The cabinet was full of guns, knives, bombs, and what looked like blueprints. Ammo lined the sides of the compartment, and three guns were pinned up higher than the rest. All machine guns. David inhaled sharply. This was dangerous stuff for anyone to be keeping without reason.

"What are you doing in here?" Lui's voice cut through the air. David jumped in shock. Now he was in for it.

"N-nothing, I was, I was just looking for the bathroom and..." David could hear how weak the excuse was.

"Why do you have so many weapons?" David weakly stuttered.

"Self defence," Lui grumbled, "I think it's time we called in a night. I see you around Nogla." Lui escorted David to his penthouse door and practically pushed him out. The door slammed in his face.

"That went well," David muttered to himself before turning on his heel and walking in the opposite direction. 

So many questions flew around David's head. Why did Lui have so many guns? What was he hiding from? What was he afraid of? What was he going to attack?

Why was Delirious written in the top right corner of one of the blueprints?


	11. Chapter Eleven ~ Growing Pains

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Growing pains - a metaphor to describe the problems we face in our everyday lives

Evan skidded to a halt next to the narrow alleyway with only the street lights illuminating its passageway. He quickly caught his breath from his impromptu run, and turned into the alleyway. Nogla urgently shouted at him to run for that alley because he spotted suspicious activity down it on his hacked security cameras. Evan was only scouring the streets for Delirious, not really focused on the destination, until Nogla gave him those instructions.

Evan quickly felt his mask to ensure that it was secured properly, and felt where the dagger in his inner jacket pocket was. Just incase he needed to use it. It was likely. Vanoss took slow, cautious steps down the winding path, being careful to avoid stepping on loud rubble. Soon enough, Vanoss found himself next to a door on the left side of the alley, the only way he could see the door was from the flickering, dim light above it. 

Vanoss swivelled around to make sure no one would sneak up behind him, he was so far from the comfort of the main road. 

"I don't see anything Nogla," Vanoss whispered only loud enough for his earpiece to pick it up. 

"I'm sure this was it, let me double check-" Nogla suggested. He audibly clambered away from his cameras to check a different monitor. Now Evan was truly alone. Then he heard a crunch. Footsteps from ahead, it sounded like two pairs. Vanoss' head whipped up so fast he almost got whiplash. His heart started pounding in his chest, adrenaline preparing itself for fighting.

"Vanoss, it's so...lovely to see you," a sickeningly soothing voice cooed. It didn't sound familiar to Evan, but the voice is one he wouldn't forget. The rich timbre of his voice could lull him to sleep in the right setting, but he was too alert to fall for that. 

Two men stepped into the light. One was gangly with a layer of sinewy muscle coating his bare arms. A mop of blond hair sat flat on his head, squished down by the purple mask covering his icy blue eyes. He slowly cracked each of his long, bony fingers, not breaking eye contact with Vanoss. Although he towered over Evan, Evan was more muscular than the willowy man, and Vanoss believed that if he sat on his rib cage he might crush him. 

The other man was tougher and more robust, bulging muscles lining his body that would make bodybuilders fawn. He sported a pair of bunny ears on top of his brown hair. His eyes were covered with a band with the greek letter Omega in the centre. Light brown stubble spread down his jawline and chin, spilling onto his neck. 

"Do I know you?" Vanoss asked. He meant for it to sound genuine, and not like a mockery, but it still came out in Evan's sarcastic tone. The man in purple cracked his long neck to the right before glaring at Vanoss. His partner slapped a hand to his chest, holding him back.

"I'm Ohmwrecker and this is my accomplice, McQuaid," the robust man replied. Ohm took a step forward, leaning into Evan's personal space. 

"And what are you doing down here at this time of night?" Vanoss asked, trying to make his voice sound more threatening.

"Why don't we show you?" Ohm asked. He shot out his hand and pulled down on his shoulder. Before Evan could even comprehend what was happening, Ohm sank his fist into the tender flesh of Vanoss' stomach. Evan puffed out of breath, winded by the punch, and he was immediately off guard. 

While Evan was doubled over clutching his stomach, McQuaid forced Evan's hands behind his back and held them there in a death grip. No matter how hard Evan pulled and tugged and tried to get away, he wouldn't budge. All he achieved were red marks and hand shaped bruises. 

Ohm forced another punch into Evan's gut, it sunk straight into his right kidney. Blinding pain flashed up Evan's torso, and he couldn't move away or even bend over when two more punches were thrown into his chest. McQuaid kicked the backs of his knees, making them buckle and send Evan flying to the ground. Ohm kicked him over so he was flat on his back, McQuaid finally let go of his hands. Before Evan had the chance to get up and fight back, the toe of Ohm's boot was under his chin. His foot was vertical with his throat, the pressure of it was cutting off Evan's airflow, and he was choking for breath. Ohm took his foot off slightly to keep Evan conscious. 

"If I shift all my weight to that foot, your neck would simply snap," Ohm clicked his fingers, "just like a twig." Vanoss didn't replied, he just stared up at him. Ohm slammed his foot down into Evan's gut again. He felt a bit of bile come up, but he forced it back down. He was winded again.

"McQuaid, take his mask off. It's time to finally see who Los Santos' beloved Vanoss truly is," Ohm ordered, eyes trained on Vanoss' writhing figure. 

McQuaid bent down and pulled his mask from his head, the earpiece built into the mask was gone too. If Nogla were to return, they couldn't communicate. Evan's chocolate eyes burned into Ohm's, a hatred fuelled fire burning deep within them. Ohm smirked devilishly.

"Asian? I wasn't expecting that," Ohm pondered.

"I'm Canadian, you fuck!" Evan spat onto the tongue of his boot. 

"I also wasn't expecting such vile words to fall out from such a pretty face." Ohm toed Evan's face to the side, inspecting his jawline. Evan felt a wave to anger flush his face. He tried to get up again but Ohm's foot stayed firmly still.

"Good thing we didn't harm your face, how disastrous would that have been? McQuaid, check him for ID," Ohm added as an afterthought. McQuaid sunk to his knees and began rummaging through Vanoss' pockets, looking for his wallet or any other type of identification. 

"No sign of anything," McQuaid responded, rising once more. 

"Doesn't matter, we know what he looks like, and once we find his name and hand him to the media, we'll be rich," Ohm laughed, a sweet sound that was inappropriate for a setting like this. 

"Let's go, we have no need for him anymore," McQuaid said. He kicked Evan's mask back over to him. McQuaid noticed the quick flash of an earpiece, and stomped on it, successfully smashing the expensive technology beyond repair. Ohm landed one last kick to Evan's torso before the two ran down the alleyway and disappeared into the darkness.

Evan didn't know how long he lay there for, but he decided to try to get up once the ache started setting in on his bones. His knees stung and every time he breathed in his ribs ached. He picked up his mask, smashed to bits, and shoved the parts into his jacket pocket. 

After a solid twenty minutes of Evan trying to hobble back to his car, he finally made it. He drove up and slowly made his way to the base. He pulled into the garage and pulled himself up the stairs, using the railing to balance. He knocked at the door and Nogla answered it with a stricken expression, one that never graced the other man's face often.

"I'm here to let you know that I'm alive. I was mugged, and, and-" Evan handed the bits of broken tech to David, "there was nothing I could do, they had me pinned." David eyed the technology sadly, he spent months developing the features in the mask, and now he would have to delicately build another. 

"Who did this?" Nogla whispered.

"Ah- I want you or anyone to find out as much as you can about OhmWrecker and McQuaid. It was those two, and they've seen my face. Who knows what they could do with that?" Evan ordered. David nodded.

"Ok, go home and get heaps of rest. There's not much we have in the way of medicine here." David eyed him sadly. 

"Can do, Nogla. Goodnight." Nogla locked the door and sent Evan back to his apartment, where his roommate would be sleeping in a cold bed.

***

Evan used what little energy he had left trying to fit the finicky keys into the slot. He door opened with a click and he tiptoed inside. He rounded the corner to go to the bathroom and inspect his injuries properly, but a tapping sound distracted him. Evan turned and found himself staring straight into Jonathan's misty eyes.

"Ev...where have you been? Do you know how long I have been sitting here, waiting for you to show up? Have you been...seeing someone?" Jonathan questioned in a heartbroken tone. 

Fuck.

He forgot to tell Jon that he had "plans with friends" tonight. Now he thinks he's been out fucking other people.

"Jesus Christ, Jonathan no way. You know I would never stoop that low. Something else...happened. I forgot to call to tell you I was alright," Evan answered, shaking his hands at the accusation. 

"Wait, you forgot to tell me you were alright?" Before Evan could defend himself, Jon leaned over and flicked on the light switch. A beam of bright light assaulted his eyes, and made the bruises and marks on his skin pop. Jon's eyes were fixated on the shoe print and bruising around Evan's throat.

"Evan! What happened to you? Who did this?" Jonathan's hands shot up to cradle Evan's face. Evan placed his warm hands over Jon's smaller ones. The sleeve of his shirt fell down, revealing the hand marks around his wrists, angry, red, and raw. Jon choked back a sob. 

"I was mugged. One of them held me down by the throat with his shoe, which explains this." Evan pointed to the footprint on his neck.

"No wonder your voice is so croaky," Jon teased, trying to assure himself more than Evan. Evan didn't even notice how strained his voice sounded until Jonathan pointed it out.

"Where else did they hurt you, Ev?" Jon asked, eyes roaming Evan's body for other signs of injury. Evan took a step back and pulled his shirt off, inspecting his torso injuries for the first time. Angry red marks around dark purple blotches bloomed across his abdomen like cursed flowers. Jon gasped, a hand flying over his mouth. If Evan could laugh, he would be making fun of how dramatic Jon was being, but Evan could not move for pain. 

"Who did this to you?" He whispered, a snarl distorting his pretty features. 

"Two thugs called OhmWrecker and McQuaid." Jon furrowed his eyebrows. Then he looked up, puzzled.

"I can barely see an inch of flesh on your stomach, how come they left your face alone?"

"They told me I was too pretty to butcher up," Evan replied. 

"Bastards," Jon mumbled. A blush formed high on his cheekbones.

"They were right though, weren't they? I am exceptionally pretty," Evan grinned despite his pain. Jon laughed.

"Damn right you are, why else would I be with you?" The two laughed for a bit, or at least they tried to. Evan was in too much pain to properly laugh.

"Tomorrow, I'm taking you out to the hospital, I don't care what you say. Then I'm making sure those thugs never hurt you again, no one will," Jon promised, a bold smirk lifting his face. He pressed his lips to Evan's, sealing the promise. In that moment, Evan felt safe, the safest he had been since the Vanoss project started. He knew that he could trust Jon, Jonathan wouldn't fail him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Longer chapter, hopefully more exciting than the fluffy chapters I have been doing so far. Look out for the building tension!


	12. Chapter Twelve ~ The Anchormen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tw: gore
> 
> It's not extreme, but I'm not taking chances

Jonathan sped away from the hospital towards Lui's penthouse. He needed to pick up a blunt knife before he left to destroy Ohm and Mcquaid. A blunt knife does not work as well as a sharp one, but that's the point. He wanted their deaths to be slow and antagonising. He wanted their skin to rip slowly, their blood to spurt from their filthy veins. 

When Evan told him what happened last night, Jon was filled with blind rage. He would not plot their deaths carefully, he needed to slaughter them as soon as possible to see that justice was served. The bloodlust didn't disappear from his mind once Evan was asleep that night, or when he dropped him off at the hospital. 

The only problem was that Jonathan didn't know where to start. How common were the names McQuaid and Ohm? That is, until Evan mumbled something:

"Hey, isn't McQuaid the anchorman on that channel? You know, the one with the ugly, yellow intro? Channel five I think."

Jon had whipped out his phone and found the Wikipedia page for Bryce McQuaid. He showed Evan the picture of him and Evan confirmed that it was his body and hair. The article read that Bryce was a reporter until he got promoted to anchorman after his report of the Los Santos Bank robbery by Delirious went viral. Jon had kissed Evan goodbye before walking out in a controlled manner.

Now Jon was rummaging through Lui's knife collection, looking for the biggest, bluntest one possible. Lui was sprawled across his couch.

"Hey you know the guy I'm dating? David? Well, he went searching through my stuff and found my gun stash," Lui shouted out from the other room.

"He's a chill guy from what I remember, he won't do shit about it," Jon yelled back. He finally found it. The knife was long, but the blade was worn out and the grip was worn down. It was Delirious' favourite knife once, and he used it so much that he wore it out and never bothered to sharpen it. Now it would serve him again. Jonathan grinned and walked out of Lui's bedroom to his living room. 

"What are you doing anyways, did you find someone to target?" Lui asked, eyeing the knife in his grip. Delirious tucked the knife into his inner jacket pocket. 

"No, this is personal," Jon answered darkly. 

"Well, are you at least going to tell me who it is?" 

"Keep an eye out, you'll see it soon enough." Jonathan turned his back on Lui's confused expression and left. He had business to attend.

***

Jon finally tracked down the exact location of Bryce McQuaid and Ryan O'Wrecker, two anchormen for the Channel Five news. It only took him an hour and a text to Brian to hack the city's security camera system. He was lead to a quaint bookstore on the outskirts of Los Santos. Jon spotted Bryce and Ryan walking up and down the aisles looking for a book they would never get to read. 

Their car was at the other end of an alleyway they would have to travel through, so Jon leaned in a doorway to the back of a shop. His mask was slipped over his face. His back faced out into the alley, so he had to look over his right shoulder to see. 

The bells of the bookshop door rung, meaning the two anchormen in question had chosen a mediocre novel with a good blurb and departed. Jon listened in to their conversation as they rounded the corner into the alleyway.

"You don't think he'll spill, do you? I mean, if he goes to the police, we can expose him too," one spoke with a campy tone. 

"Nah, he won't if he knows what's good for him," a sweeter voice replied. They must be talking about Evan, but what do they mean expose? Evan was just walking down the street when they attacked him. Evan was at his most vulnerable walking by himself in the dark. Delusional idiots.

Jon's grip on his knife tightened, right hand in left pocket. The two men were level with Jon and that's when he decided to strike. Jon took the knife from his pocket and lodged it into Bryce's gut. A surprised grunt fell from the blond's lips. Delirious looked straight into the icy blue eyes of McQuaid as he pulled out the knife and made a cut across his throat shallow enough that it wouldn't kill him. Bryce dropped to the alley ground, making awful choking, gurgling noises. 

Delirious pounced on Ryan, his left forearm dug into his broad neck, and the tip of the knife pointing into his belly button. Ryan's face began to change to a purplish red as he was deprived of air. Delirious began to push the knife into the flesh of his stomach, inch by antagonising inch. Ryan was trying to say something, so Delirious pulled his arm back just enough to let a bit of air in.

"Please...please stop, we didn't... didn't do anything... we take it back," he sputtered pathetically. It was music to Jon's ears, it's what they deserve for being thugs and touching Evan. Jonathan leaned in so his mask was pressed up against Ryan's face and the knife was buried in his gut to the hilt.

"Hope it was worth it," Delirious whispered. He started dragging the blade up, skin ripping apart with difficulty from the bluntness of the knife. He avoided the bones, and made his way to Ryan's throat, where he ripped up quickly, sending spurts of blood all over Delirious' clothes. Delirious retracted his arm and the knife, and Ryan dropped to the bloody ground with his eyes wide open, unseeing. 

A rough gasping sound echoed around the alleyway, Jon had almost forgotten about McQuaid slowly drowning in his own blood. Delirious crouched next to him.

"Aww," he cooed. He sunk the knife into Bryce's heart, and began tearing the knife down through flesh to start carving the infamous 'D'. Bryce was dead within seconds. 

Once he finished carving the D into Bryce, he flipped Ryan over onto his stomach and carved the D into his back. His front was too messy to leave the carving. He left the corpse turned over so when the police found them they would have the shock of the gizzards spilling out of the anchorman's body. 

Delirious ran back to his car, he took his shoes off halfway so he wouldn't leave behind bloody footprints. He drove to a nearby abandoned warehouse, owned by Lui as a hideout for straight after crimes. Jonathan stripped off the blood soaked clothes and burned them in a barrel. He redressed into a spare set of clothes form the boot of his car. He also washed the blood off the knife and buried it in the ground in the corner of the warehouse. He couldn't have anyone find that knife. 

The nation will loathe him for killing their beloved anchormen.


	13. Chapter Thirteen ~ Suspicion

Evan was not discharged until the following morning, so Jonathan spent the night alone in their apartment. He checked the news hourly, paranoid that he left behind evidence at the crime scene. Jon usually has time to plan out his murders more carefully, but this particular incident was way more personal than the previous ones. Morning broke and there was still no sign that the anchormen had been discovered, so Jon felt safe enough to leave the comforts of his flat.

Evan greeted Jon with a broad smile. The nurse handed Jon various pain medications with instructions on when and how to take them. She also described how to change the dressings on his wounds, and warned him to bring Evan back if any infections arose. Evan dressed into the change of clothes Jon had brought for him, then they departed. Evan limped as he walked, the pain meds started to fade and the dull ache began to return. 

"Jon, am I allowed to have any pills now? I haven't had any this morning," Evan asked.

"Of course, but you'll have to tough it out until lunch after that. According to this list, you can only have two every four hours," Jon replied, re-reading the list of written instructions. Evan checked the time on his phone, it was only 8:00 am. Once they were seated in Jon's car, Evan took the tablets. It was only a short journey back to their apartment, and they were just in time for the morning news. 

Jon helped Evan clamber up the stairs, one arm secured around his waist and another holding Evan's left arm over his shoulder. Once inside, Jon sat Evan down on the couch and fetched some pillows for him to rest his feet on. Jon got some water and a bowl of chips for the two of them, and sat down next to Evan.

"How was your night without me? Boring?" Evan asked, glancing over at Jon. 

"It was refreshing, not having you stomping around the joint," Jon laughed, "I got to relax."

"And do you use your left hand or right hand to do that?" Evan questioned, pretending to be intrigued. 

"I like how you assume I only use one hand to do that." Jon smirked and sipped from his glass of water. Evan choked on the chips he was munching. He leaned forward to grab the TV remote as his face went bright red. He was definitely not imagining Jonathan in a compromising position. He clicked the power button on the remote and flicked to a random news program. They were finishing up a story on rising stock prices when the flashing lights of the breaking news segment came on. 

"This just in, overnight police have found the bodies of Bryce McQuaid and Ryan O'Wrecker, the news anchors from Channel Five. They were defiled in a such a way that it would make even the most hardened war veterans flinch. Police reports describe the scene as 'covered in pools of blood', and it is written that Ryan O'Wreckers organs had partially been destroyed and removed. The letter D had been carved into both of the victims, identifying this as another work of the notorious Delirious. We will remember the day our two favourite anchormen were ripped from us before their time. Stay safe everyone, God bless America." The woman finished and cut to advertisement. Jon was as white as a sheet and Evan felt numb. It was McQuaid, the reporter, who had attacked him. But O'Wrecker?

O'Wrecker.

OWrecker.

OhmWrecker.

"Those were the men who mugged me, and probably countless others, and they're remembered as heroes," Evan whispered. Jon still sat in silence, eyeing the memorial collage on the screen. Jonathan's phone was lying face up on the coffee table, and it lit up with a text.

"YOU KNOW THAT'S NOT WHAT WE DO" - L.

Jon snatched his phone before Evan could fully comprehend the bizarre message. 

"I have a phone call to make, I'll be back in a sec Ev." Jon quickly kissed him as he passed and disappeared around the corner into the bedroom. Evan collapsed in on himself, everything seemed to happen so quickly. The timing of everything was perfect. Too perfect. Something was a little...off.

Something clicked into place in Evan's mind. He darted for his phone and called someone he could always rely on.

"David, hello?"

"Evan, are ye feeling any better?" The Irish accented man boomed back.

"A little, but my state isn't the reason I rang. Could you pick me up from my apartment? The excuse for Jon is that Brock has urgent relationship drama and he needs me in person to calm him down," Evan pleaded. 

"Wait, why are you trying to lie and get away from Jonathan?" Nogla asked.

"It's complicated, but I have a bad feeling. I'll explain it all when you get here. Basically, I think Jon knows or has connections to Delirious."

***

"What the fuck?!" Lui screamed over the phone.

"Subtly, what is it now?" Jon shot back.

"What the fuck is your problem? Killing those anchormen will not only get us international attention, but it will also increase the bounty on us," Lui argued, rage still coursing his voice.

"Calm down, you are overanalysing it," Jon tried to rationalise.

"This isn't what we fucking do! Not unless it's necessary, you know we only attack if-"

"Well someone had to do it!" Jon shouted. His breathing was the only thing heard over the phone line, Lui was stunned into silence. When not on a mission, Jonathan was a level headed person and rarely got angry.

"They- they attacked him, they attacked Evan. Do you think I was going to let that slide?" Jon whimpered, choking back sudden tears.

"I- I didn't know, I'm sorry," Lui uttered. When he said nothing more, Jon elaborated.

"They're thugs, they mug and assault people. I never even knew about them until Evan limped home muttering something about McQuaid. I knew what I had to do to protect him," Jon whispered. He had forgotten that Evan was only in the room next over.

"Listen, later tonight I'm going to Luke's to clear my head, then we'll figure out our next move. Bye." Jon hung up and walked back out to Evan, who was scrolling through Facebook.

"Who was it?" Evan asked, still looking down at his phone.

"Just Lui again, he was wondering about...my debt. I owe a bit of money to him at the moment," Jon explained. Evan had only met Lui a couple of times, but he still recognised the name. 

A knock echoed across the awkward silence. Jon opened the door and was greeted by a familiar, tall man.

"David, hi. Here for Evan?" Jon questioned, confused by his unannounced arrival.

"Yeah, uh, it's pretty urgent. Brock's going through some serious drama at the moment and we desperately need Evan to calm him down," Nogla painted a worried look across his face. Evan sat up in his chair, acting it up. He slowly stood up and hobbled over to Nogla.

"Fuck, I know what this is about. Catch you when this has blown over Jon." He quickly kissed Jon and left with Nogla. Once they were safely out of earshot Evan whispered, "I've never seen you act so well before".

"I told you I'm a man of many talents. Now, tell me about this suspicion."


	14. Chapter Fourteen ~ Filthy Plans

Evan stirred his cup of coffee and gave it a testing sip. Perfect flavour, perfect temperature. He flopped into his seat with a small grunt and sipped at his coffee. David quickly joined him, sitting opposite him and stirring his own tea.

They had raced back to the base on the outskirts of the city after leaving the apartment. Evan's face was creased with worry the entire trip. No one else was there so there was no chance of anyone eavesdropping. Tyler would lose his temper and Brock would tell Evan to sever all ties with Jonathan.

"So, Jonathan might have links to Delirious? Explain," David asked, drinking his tea. Evan looked into his cup, steam rising off the scalding beverage. His stomach twisted and knotted at the mere thought that Jonathan could be related to a...a terrorist.

"It started with the attack. Jon dropped me off at the hospital for the examination and in the span of a day my attackers wind up face down in an alleyway. Jon never gave me details of what he did that day, even when I asked. Not only that, but they have Delirious' markings carved into them? It's all too convenient, it all happened so quickly. One day I'm attacked by two anchormen and they are found dead two days later? It can't be a coincidence that they just so happened to be the next victims after they attacked me," Evan ranted.

"So where does Jon fit into the picture?" David asked, slurping his tea once more.

"I think that Jon must have tipped Delirious off somehow. I don't know how he even has Delirious in his contacts, but it's the only way. It has to be some sort of revenge for me," Evan replied. David placed his empty mug on the table and clasped his hands together. Evan remembered a hazy memory from after the attack.

"That's right! Jon also said to me the night of the attack 'I'm making sure those thugs never hurt you again, no one will'," Evan offered, furrowing his eyebrows. 

"Fuck, that is indeed creepy, and to think that they turned up dead right after. It just can't be a coincidence." They both looked away from each other, scared of the impending truth.

"Have you seen anyone or anything else that supports your theory?" He asks. Evan blanches, the text Jon got this morning...

"Yeah, but you aren't going to like it. He was on the phone to Lui this morning talking about some debt that had to be repaid. Before that, he got a text from Lui saying 'you know this isn't what we do'," Evan trailed off when he caught David's expression. David's eyes were glazed over, unseeing.

"Ok so, any ideas what that means?" David asked.

"Yeah, I'm thinking that Jon convinced Lui into getting the anchormen killed, but Lui is feeling guilty about it? I don't know why he would be guilty though..." Evan said.

"Evan...you don't think that Lui would be Delirious, would he?" David asked, his eyes pleading that his thoughts would be wrong.

"No, Delirious is white and taller than Lui. But Lui must be involved too. Have you noticed anything off while you've been with Lui?" Evan questioned.

"Actually, yes. In his room, he had a concealed wall of weapons, huge guns and knives. There were even some blueprints with the word DELIRIOUS written in bold up the top," David answered with a frown.

"Fuck, this is worse than I thought. What should we do?" Evan asked.

"Jonathan is no immediate threat to you if he has had these guys killed to protect you, there's not much we can do until we have solid proof," David concluded. Evan nods, finally drinking his coffee.

***

Luke swung the door open with a grumpy face. Jonathan recoiled in shock, Luke's face was flushed with anger.

"What the fuck Jon? Don't you think you've gone too far this time?" Luke fumed, jabbing a finger into Jon's chest. Jon frowned and pushed his way into Luke's house.

"Shut up and let me explain. They attacked Evan." Silence followed.

"Oh Jon, I'm sorry," Luke said, sitting in a nearby chair.

"I think I was too quick to react and now Evan might be suspicious of...me," Jon said, resting his forehead in his hands.

"I don't know what to do, Luke," Jon sighed.

"You'll have to let me think for a bit. Meanwhile, can I see the newest article you two have written about Vanoss? I haven't read it yet." Jon pulled his laptop out of his bag and opened it.

"Hey Jon, when you say attacked, you don't mean they...did they?" Luke asked, a dreadful look in his stormy eyes. Jon's slender fingers froze on the keys, half finished pulling up the document. 

"Oh god no, they didn't rape him. Their fates would have been much worse than what they already were," Jon scowled at the thought of those pigs touching his boyfriend, his Evan, like that.

"Worse than their organs spilling out onto the pavement?" Luke chuckled darkly, to which Jon smirked and nodded. Jon opened his laptop and showed Luke the article published several days ago.

In the centre of the page was a photo of Vanoss taken from ground level, angling up to portray him as heroic as possible. Evan always wrote articles centred around how brave Vanoss was, so Jon had to take photos to match the message Evan was trying to convey. Despite Jon's disliking of Vanoss, he doesn't want to disappoint Evan. Luke snapped his fingers.

"That's it!"

"What?" Jon mumbled, cocking his head to the left.

"I know what you have to do, you have to have Evan see you and 'Delirious' in the same place," Luke suggested.

"Uh, you'll have to elaborate," Jon prompted.

"You said that Evan might be getting suspicious of you, right? So, if he sees you in the same place, he'll know you're not the same person!" Luke concluded, throwing his hands up.

"Yeah, but where can I be Delirious without being arrested?" Jon huffed.

"Your apartment," Luke smiled. Jon's eyes darted up, mouth ajar.

"No, way to risky, someone could see me, or Evan may over power me..."

"In the crippled state he is in? I highly doubt that Jon. It's the only way. If you come to his rescue and play dumb, he'll trust that you aren't Delirious and his suspicions will fade."

Now, this was beginning to start like a filthy plan.


	15. Chapter Fifteen ~ Dark Necessities

The bruises had mellowed out and the pills had subsided in the previous two weeks. Evan was beginning to feel like his usual self. He still flinched from time to time, but he wants to get back out at Vanoss. Wildcat has been frequenting the city while Vanoss was out of action, so Tyler has finally been able to brand himself. Evan has been reading the paper, seeing he has taken time off work to heal, and Wildcat’s pig mask has been plastered on the front everyday. 

Along with the warnings for Delirious.

Tyler reports to Evan everyday about the crimes he quelled, but he hasn’t seen a sign of Delirious since the murders of the anchormen. Evan thought this meant he was planning something else big, but maybe he’s trying to lay low. 

Delirious is a well known serial killer in California, but the other states have different killers to worry about, but now that he has slaughtered two celebrities, his name is on the map. Vanoss is famously Delirious’ rival, always there to limit his actions and help plot his next possible moves, so Evan was nervous to see that his alter ego has gathered a larger following. Fan pages were created at one extreme, and the opposite end called for his head for being a vigilante. Evan didn’t want to dwell on the issue, as long as he stayed anonymous, it wasn’t a problem. 

A crash brought Evan out of his thoughts.

“Fuck!” Jon yelled, shielding his face as glass shards spread out across the kitchen floor. Jon raced out of the room to grab a dustpan. He quickly swept it up and brushed the remains into the bin. Evan stood up to see if Jon needed help. He put the dustpan back and grabbed out two more glasses.

“Sorry Evan, I was going to pour some wine for us,” Jon apologised, grabbing a bottle from the fridge. Evan approached Jon slowly, admiring the way his torso twists and turns as he makes his moves. When Evan didn’t reply, Jon swivelled around to look at him. Jon jumped at how close his boyfriend was, chest to chest, Evan’s hands were anchored on the bench behind Jonathan, eliminating his escape. Evan eyed Jon with a smirk and a glint of passion. 

“Woah, Evan are you ok?” Jon asked nervously, he never acted like this. 

“Yeah Jon, I’m perfect,” Evan murmured before capturing Jon’s soft lips in a kiss. Jon kept a gasp back, and kissed Evan softly. He threaded his hands into Evan’s hair as their kiss got more heated. It was hot and wet and perfect. 

Evan’s hands made their way down Jon’s muscled back and cupped his ass firmly. Jon sighed and Evan hoisted Jon up and wrapped his legs around his waist, their lips never breaking contact. Jon began to kiss his way down Evan’s jawline and neck and Evan carried Jon into his bedroom. 

Evan laid Jon down and shut the door. He turned back to Jon and smirked, lust and love dancing in his gaze. Jon mirrored his expression, hands resting by his head, inviting Evan to join him.

“I’ve been waiting a long time for this moment, Jonathan,” Evan said, walking back over to join his boyfriend. Evan swung his shirt over his head and discarded it on the floor. He joined Jon once more, attacking his lips and neck with a ferocity that made a pit deep below in Jon pool with heat. 

“So have I,” Jon murmured through heavy breaths. Evan gripped the hem of Jon’s tight shirt and pulled it over Jon’s head. He threw it on the floor next to his own shirt. Evan placed his hands on the sides of Jon’s trim waist, fingers dancing lightly over the skin. He kissed his way down Jon’s tan neck and torso. Jon threaded his fingers through Evan’s dark hair again as Evan reached Jon’s waistband. 

Evan looked up at Jon, playing with the zipper on his pants. His eyes pleaded for permission, to which Jon nodded, biting his plump lower lip. Evan slipped Jon’s pants off, leaving him in his boxers. Evan ran his right hand over the front of them, feeling Jon harden beneath him. He looked back up at Jon; he was propped up on his elbows, a light blush colouring his cheeks. Evan slid his fingers underneath the band and pulled them down. Evan took in the sight of Jonathan, feeling aroused himself. 

Evan went to work on Jonathan, using his hands and his tongue to please him. The sounds Jon emitted were confirmations for Evan that he was doing the right thing. Jon was quietly moaning Evan’s name, his eyes closed in pleasure. Evan felt something salty drip onto his tongue, so he pulled away from Jon. Jon whined at the loss of stimulation.

“Not yet Jon, we’ve barely started,” Evan smirked. Evan unzipped his own jeans and threw them to the floor, he’ll worry about cleaning them later. He took off his own boxers and placed himself in between Jon’s toned legs. Evan was aching to feel Jon, but he needed to be prepped first. 

Evan reached across Jon and grabbed some lube from his bedside drawer. He spread it across his fingers and slowly inserted one into Jon. Jon sharply inhaled and grasped Evan’s forearms. 

“Sh, it’s ok, just relax,” Evan cooed, pushing the finger in more. Once Evan was fully in Jon, he stilled waiting for Jonathan to get used to the sensation.

“M-move,” Jon stuttered. Evan began pumping his finger, and was rewarded with breathy moans from Jonathan. Evan slowly slid in another finger and began spreading Jonathan. With every pump he grazed Jon’s prostate; Jon bucked his hips with the sensations. Evan held his hips down with his other hand, eliminating Jon escape from the intense pleasure. 

“Please Evan, I can’t wait any longer,” Jon sighed, head thrown back. Evan withdrew his fingers. He lubed himself and pressed his head against Jon’s entrance, teasing him one final time. 

“Stop it Evan, just keep going,” Jon laughed a little. Evan smiled at Jon’s expression and desire for him. He pushed himself in slowly, stretching Jon out even further. Evan began to thrust, slowly at first, trying not to overwhelm Jon. 

“Faster,” Jon moaned. Evan sped up his pace. Jon wrapped his legs around Evan’s back, pulling him closer. Evan attacked Jon’s neck, leaving red marks in his wake. Jon kept moaning, lightly digging his fingernails into Evan’s back, exciting Evan even more than possible. 

“Ah! Fuck, Evan, don’t stop,” Jon cried out, arching his back. Evan reached down between them and stroked Jon quickly, in time with his thrusting. He hit his prostate with every stoke, overwhelming Jonathan with pleasure, pushing him to the edge.

“Please Evan, don’t stop I’m going to come,” Jon moaned. Evan captured Jon’s mouth in a kiss as Jon began to orgasm. He tightened around Evan, bringing Evan to his climax, deep inside Jon. They stayed united for a moment before Evan pulled out. Jon’s chest rose and fell with his deep breaths. 

Evan quickly got a towel to clean up the mess while Jon regained his composure. He stopped to admire his boyfriend lying in his bed. He looked so ethereal, face flushed and glowing. He looked like a god, and Evan couldn’t help but think he was the luckiest man alive.


	16. Chapter Sixteen ~ The Fake Attack

The thunder clapped outside, rousing Jon from his slumber. Eyes wide open, hair plastered to his forehead with sweat. He turned to face his dim alarm clock, the digital time reading “2:37”. Jon rolled over, away from his clock, and faced Evan. Beautiful, sweet, innocent Evan. Chest softly rising and falling with serene breaths, enjoying a peaceful sleep. 

Jon sat up, blankets falling down his naked torso. He swung his tan legs over the edge of his bed and took slow, steady steps towards the bathroom. His mouth was uncomfortably dry, and he desperately needed a drop of water. He shut the bathroom door to stop the light from flooding out into the bedroom and awakening Evan. 

Jon turned the faucet, letting the soothing water run over his hands and splashing the water into his face. Once he dried his face, he grabbed a cup and drank quickly, enjoying the cool feeling the water was bringing. He placed the cup down and stared into the mirror. Light hickeys spanned from his jawline down to the base of his neck. His hair was rustled and there were hand shaped marks on his hips. Jon traced his thin fingers over the marks, relishing the sensation. Jon also eyed some scars on his lower torso that Evan didn’t spot, that he got from Vanoss one risky mission years ago. 

Then Luke’s words came bouncing back into Jonathan’s mind. Evan might have been suspicious of Jon, thinking that he’s tied to Delirious because of the eerie timing of the deaths of the anchormen. Luke said the only way to diverge that suspicious is to have Delirious and Jonathan in the same place at the same tome so Evan can be sure Jonathan isn’t a rampant serial killer. That’s when Jonathan decided what he would do.

The thunder still rolled and clapped outside as Jonathan snuck back into his room. He retrieved his Delirious uniform from an inconspicuous box underneath his bed. Once he was back in the bathroom, he put the signature blue, zip up hoodie on and the black pair of slacks. Finally, he slipped on the infamous hockey mask, clean of blood. He pulled out a large, sharp knife from the bag, blade ringing out against the fabric. 

If he scared Evan, maybe he will successfully be able to quell his suspicions of Jonathan. Even more so if Jonathan rushed in to ‘save the day’. Jonathan shut the bathroom door, and snuck over to the bed where Evan slept. Jonathan’s faint shadow loomed over the bed, covering Evan’s face. He raised the knife high above his head.

A series of lightning cracks woke Evan and illuminated the room, including Delirious. Evan’s face lost it’s colour and he threw himself under the blankets, face buried in his pillow. As soon as Evan did so, Jonathan rushed quietly from the bedroom to the bathroom and began stripping down into his bedroom attire, a pair of black boxers. 

“JONATHAN!” A bloodcurdling scream arose from the bedroom. Evan must have realised he wasn’t there to defend him. He hid his Delirious attire in the bathroom where Evan could never reach, he would return it to the original location in the morning.

“JONATHAN! COME QUICK! BRING YOUR GUN!” Jonathan burst through the bed room door holding the smallest gun he owned, a tiny pistol. It was the only gun Evan knew he owned, he wouldn’t dare reveal the bigger weapons he had stocked away to his boyfriend.

“What is it Evan, what’s wrong?” Jonathan asked, putting a frantic note into his voice. 

“It-it was Delirious,” Evan shuddered and  
Jon audibly gulped, “he was standing at the end of the bed with the knife raised, then he vanished with the lightning. Please Jon, stay safe, he might still be in the apartment.” 

Jon lowered his gun.

“Ok Evan, I’ll quickly check the place. I love you,” Jon replied quietly. He snuck out of the bedroom and walked around the apartment. He took his time returning.

“Evan, there’s no one out there. Are you sure you didn’t have a nightmare? These past few weeks have been really stressful for you,” Jon suggested, placing a warm, comforting hand on Evan’s shoulder. Evan shook his head, still catching his breath.

“Definitely not, he was right there, I was wide awake,” Evan countered, scooting back into the bed frame. Jonathan sighed.

“I can’t find him, so let’s get back to sleep. I’ll be here to protect you. That disgusting man will never lay a finger on you,” Jon kissed Evan and slipped back into bed. Evan’s ragged breathing eventually calmed into a soft snore. Jon lay awake, staring at the ceiling. 

When talking about Delirious, Jon had to insult him to keep a low profile. Reverse psychology. Too much emotion is a giveaway, and not enough emotion is a giveaway. Everyone and their fucking cats cares about Delirious in Los Santos, and with the recent murders the whole West Coast has been set alight with rumours of Delirious’ whereabouts and identity. Some of the more crazy rumours suggest Delirious is Mark Zuckerberg or actually the deceased Steve Jobs, getting revenge on people who don’t use their products. Idiots.

Delirious was just a man. An unassuming, ordinary man. The slight difference was the bloodlust and murder, of course. Lui, Brian, and Craig were all becoming larger names in the media alongside Delirious. They were respectively known as Monkey, Terroriser, and Ladd. 

Jonathan was happy to see his friends finally settling down into their romantic lives. Craig moved in with Tyler, one of Evan’s friends, and adopted a dog called Ace. Brian finally figured out his crisis with Brock, the man he was having one night stands with. Even Lui had found an Irish man called David, but that fell to shambles after David discovered Lui’s blueprints and weapons in his secret compartment. Lui regret that however, he wanted to make amends with David.

A good romantic life is the least they deserve after everything they have done for the Delirious project.


	17. Chapter Seventeen ~ Retaliation

It was fair to say Evan was paranoid. After his midnight visit from Delirious, it was hard to keep his eyes shut. It was only a week later, and the visions didn’t leave him even in sleep. Evan now knew that Delirious was watching him and Jon. Despite Evan’s suspicions that Jon is involved with Delirious, he wanted to protect the man he loved. 

He needed an excuse to patrol the apartment as Vanoss, but it was almost impossible without revealing his true identity. He supposed he could find a way to make Jon see Vanoss and Evan at the same time, then he could report to Delirious and get him to lay off his apartment. Even then that wasn’t fool proof, either of them might come to the conclusion that Evan was instead Wildcat or Nogla.

Maybe Evan could pull the same stunt as Delirious? Evan could visit Jonathan at night disguised as Vanoss, and Jon could easily mistake it for being just a dream. Even so, once Vanoss is seen in their apartment, Jon can report that Vanoss knows that Delirious had also been there. He just needed a way to wake Jon in the night, and disappear quick enough to regain his composure as Evan.

This was turning into a battle of wits. Evan could barely keep his mind wrapped around it all. It almost seemed...ridiculous to show up as Vanoss in his own apartment, but he ran the idea passed Nogla, Tyler, and Brock, and they all said the same thing:

Action is better than standing still.

 

***

Were the windows open? Jonathan’s legs were freezing, hairs standing up on end like how they would in anticipation, but this was just from the cold. The icy winds coming from the ajar windows, making the curtains flutter in the night’s breeze. 

Wait.

Ajar windows? Jon never slept with the windows open. Working as a “criminal” for all his life had taught him that open windows were weak spots.

Someone was in the apartment. 

Jonathan’s eyes flew open as fast as they could for a tired man. There he was, crouching at the foot of his bed, Vanoss. Owl mask and everything. He had an arm raised with a shining, silver pistol in his grip. As Jon opened his mouth to shout to Evan, himself, or anyone, Vanoss pulled the trigger.

A supersonic bang temporarily deafened Jon as the bullet whizzed passed his head and lodged itself straight into the headrest of his bed. To protect his head from more, better aimed, potential shots, Jon ducked his head and flung his arms over the top. In all of this commotion, Jon had almost forgotten about Evan, who was yelling besides him. 

“Evan! Are you ok?” Jon asked, grabbing his shoulders and checking his boyfriend for signs of being shot.

“Yeah, I’m ok Jon. He escaped through the window. I - I don’t- what should we do?” Evan stammered, fearful eyes meeting Jon’s. 

“We should call the police,” Jon said affirmatively. His hand reached for the phone before Evan stopped him and took his hand in his grasp.

“I don’t think we should. This Vanoss guy is seen as a hero by the police. Besides, you know how some police react to people like...us. Who’s side do you think they’ll take? The vigilante hero’s or the two faggots huddled up together?” Evan argued, face grimacing as he snarls the slur. Jon sighed and averted his gaze to the floor. Evan had a point, with today’s political issues, plus the situation with crooked cops, it just wasn’t worth it.

Especially since Delirious could take matters into his own hands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Super short update today, just last week I realised I hadn't updated this in 6 months. I think I had some writer's block so I needed to get this tiny, illogical chapter out to get the ball rolling again.


End file.
